Historical

Crosby Mansion Brewster MA

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The  Crosby Mansion overlooks the famous Brewster Flats on Cape Cod Bay. Owners Albert and Matilda Crosby travelled to Europe in the mid-1870s

Crosby Mansion Brewster MA

The Crosby mansion in Brewster is a monument to an earlier time, a time of opulence, grandeur and painstaking craftsmanship.

Standing tall on a rise of land with sweeping views of Cape Cod bay, the three-story mansion is also a monument to romance. It is the legacy of a man who went west to make his fortune and returned to the cape with a bride 20 years his junior, for whom he built the mansion called Tawasentha.

Albert Crosby was born in 1823 and raised in a modest cape house in Brewster that still stands where the mansion is, as he had the mansion, in effect, wrap around his old family homestead. Albert moved to Chicago and made his fortune producing distilled alcohol . He sold this to the army during the Civil War, and sales of this non-taxed medicinal alcohol made him a wealthy man.

Albert spared no expense for the three story, 35 room home overlooking the Bay. Completed in 1888, the home was named “Tawasentha”, probably after Longfellow’s poem, “Song of Hiawatha”. It was built in the grand style of Chicago’s Gold Coast Mansions and featured a 60 foot viewing tower, 15 fireplaces with imported tile, hand carved mahogany and oak walls, a parlor fashioned after one at the Palace of Versailles, an entrance duplicating one at Buckingham Palace, a two-story billiard room, marble sinks and floors in the baths, and gas lighting and heating throughout.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE MANSION

  • 1876 – 1888 – The mansion build is completed by the Hinckley Co.

  • 1928 – After the passing of Albert and Matilda, the property passed to her two grandnieces. Unable to maintain the large mansion, they had to sell… more on that at our live tours!

  • 1930s – Martha Atwood bought the property and formed the Cape Cod Institute of Art.

  • 1950s – The property became the Gold Coast Inn and Restaurant.

  • 1970s – Dr. Spago ran a successful summer camp for young women.

  • 1985 – The state acquired the property as part of a bayside adjunct to Nickerson State Park. It fell into advanced disrepair.

  • 1992 – The Friends of Crosby Mansion petitioned the state and began its massive restoration.

  • 2023 – The Town of Brewster and the Friends of Crosby continue the fastidious upkeep for its unique history, character, and the public’s enjoyment. In the spirit of Matilda and Albert we move progressively forward with the activities of the mansion, motivated by the living energy that it continues to exude.

 

SUMMER OPEN HOUSE TOURS

Will return for 2024

EVERY Sun. & Wed. ALL SUMMER

Self-guided with a map. Explore at your leisure.

Live docents throughout the mansion!

A $6 donation is kindly appreciated per adult.

Kids 12 and under enter for FREE.

We recommend allowing at least one hour to explore all three floors of the mansion and grounds.

Crosby Mansion is handicap accessible on the first floor, grounds, and restrooms. Please call 508-896-1744 for more information or specific arrangements.

Proceeds go to the upkeep of the property

Upcoming Special Events

The Crosby Halloween Spooktacular Show – Tickets Now Available
October 26-29: Suitable for All Ages
Come and experience a spooky and mystifying sit-down show featuring live magic and gravity-defying acrobatic performers.
DATES: Halloween weekend. Thursday 26 at 7pm, Friday 27 at 7pm, Saturday 28 at 7pm and Sunday 29 at 3pm (matinee).
TICKETS: All seats $13. Reserve online now at www.crosbymansion.com.
DOORS OPEN: 40 minutes prior to all showtimes. Enter the main mansion door and view some of our more spooky and ghoulish rooms prior to the sit-down show!
FREE: Onsite parking, public restrooms. Handicap accessible.

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Crosby Mansion. 163 Crosby Lane, Brewster, MA 02631