Landscape Information
Located on 17 acres of rural land with additional acreage to preserve views, Aspet and its environs was home to sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens and his wife Augusta from 1885 to 1907. The property consists of the late Georgian-style main house, numerous outbuildings, and extensive gardens and grounds. During his residency he was active in the “Cornish Colony,” one of many artists attracted to the region’s pastoral setting between 1890 and 1914.
The landscape, designed by Saint-Gaudens himself, is buffered by dense woodland along the northern edge of the property, with picturesque views west to Mount Ascutney from the house piazza. The formal gardens north of the house consist of four terraced parterres with copies of antique statues, a bubbling fountain, and colorful annuals and perennials. These gardens are surrounded by mature pines and are separated from each other by brick steps. Two rows of white paper birches edge the formal gardens and create a shaded, grassy lane between the Little Studio and the Bowling Green. Saint-Gaudens also added a vegetable garden, an orchard, and a 9-hole golf course, and designed paths to Blow-Me-Down pond, where his family enjoyed swimming and ice skating. The Blow-Me-Down Mill and Stone Arch Bridge were designed by McKim, Mead and White. The property, managed by the National Park Service since 1965, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.
