The College at Florham continues its Golden Anniversary celebration with a talk on Sunday, March 29, by Professor emeritus Walter Savage and Arthur Vanderbilt II on the Twomblys of Florham and their history.

The event, “The Twomblys of Florham: The Beginning and End of an Era,” is being hosted by the Friends of Florham. It will take place in Lenfell Hall in the Mansion at 3 p.m. The $25 admission is waived for Fairleigh Dickinson students. A reception will follow the presentation.

Vanderbilt and Savage will talk about Hamilton Twombly and Florence Vanderbilt Twombly, their estate, “Florham,” and their glittering era of wealth.

Vanderbilt and Savage will discuss every aspect of Florham life, from the 125 servants employed on the premises to the lavish parties and social events that the Twomblys hosted. Also to be addressed are the architects and designers that the Twomblys hired to design their grand estate.

Vanderbilt and Savage will also discuss the decline of the Florham estate and the Vanderbilt fortune, segueing into the estate’s conversion into today’s modern college campus. Carol Bere, a Friends of Florham board member, will moderate the discussion.

The Twomblys built their estate around the turn of the nineteenth century, at a cost of $2 million, according to documents in the College at Florham Library archives. According to an inflation calculator on Westegg.com/inflation, this sum would be close to $50 million in today’s dollars.

In 1952, Florence Twombly died at the age of 99, and in 1955, the contents of the estate were sold at auction, according to fdu.edu. FDU purchased the Mansion, its outbuildings and the surrounding 187
acres in 1958 for its College at Florham.

Arthur Vanderbilt II is an author and lawyer in northern New Jersey. His works include, “Fortune’s Children: The Fall of the House of Vanderbilt,” “Gardening in Eden” and “The Making of a Bestseller.” Vanderbilt is a partner at the Carella Byrne law firm and an Honorary Trustee of the Friends of Florham. In 2001, he was inducted into the New Jersey Literary Hall of Fame, according to Carella Byrne’s Web site.

Walter Savage, professor emeritus of English, has a long history with Fairleigh Dickinson University and the College at Florham. He taught the very first course offered at the College at Florham, a course that all students were required to take, according to FDU Magazine.

Savage also worked as director of Wroxton College and during 1983 was the acting president of FDU, according to Inside FDU. Prior to his involvement with FDU, Savage served in the military during World War II, according to FDU Magazine. Today, he is an active trustee in the Friends of Florham.

The Friends of Florham is a volunteer organization that was founded in 1990 to assist FDU in preserving the historic features of the campus of the College at Florham.

For more information about this event, call Public Relations at 973-443-8661.

DAN LANDAU
Photo Editor