Built in 1926, Dunwyck Hall is a 22 room historical English Tudor residence named (“Dun”) after the Gaelic-Irish and Scottish word for castle and (“Wyck”), the Dutch and Swedish word meaning “place of abundance.” The home was originally designed by Vivian Devereux Van Akin, one of America’s first female architects, as a winter cottage for prominent Chicagoans Herbert Cushman Metcalf and Mae Holmes Metcalf. A love for country living directs Van Akin’s original blueprints, which resemble a subsistence farm’s main dwelling. Over the decades, additions and improvements were made, ensuring modern comforts while retaining the sense of local history that defines Dunwyck Hall today.

With its 26-foot-high cathedral ceilings and numerous reception rooms, the house was the ideal hub for galas in the Tryon area. Until 1947, the mansion played host to celebrities including author F. Scott Fitzgerald, First Lady Grace G. Coolidge, composer George Gershwin, actor J. David Niven and socialite Lady Nancy L. Astor. Since then, the homes’s most admired features— locally-sourced granite, English half-timbering, and grand scale— have stood the test of time, both an ode to Van Akin’s vision for the home, and the skill of second generation Biltmore artisans.

Located in Columbus, N.C., Dunwyck Hall sits near numerous city amenities. The Tryon International Equestrian Center is 10 minutes away, Hendersonville a short 15 minutes, and Asheville and Greenville are 40 and 55 minutes distance, respectively.

The house was intentionally sited so that the Great Hall’s windows capture the morning sun from the east, while the dining room faces west and glows with the setting sun. Original Hope steel casement windows imported from England, slate roofing, substantial masonry, half-timbering, and seven fireplaces lend the substance and architectural distinction of a true English country house.