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964 Pelhamdale is an extraordinary home where history was made by several
successive owners:
1890-93: One of the country's premier prep schools, "The Taft School" began at 964 Pelhamdale when Horace Taft (brother of President -- and later Supreme
Court Justice -- William Howard Taft) was retained by Mrs. Clifford Black to start a school that would educate her sons.
With a starting class of 17 boys, the school expanded for several years before moving to its current location in Watertown,
Connecticut.
1910-1915: The home of Charles A. Perkins, who served in the office of, and then became, the New York County District Attorney.
He was reported to have prepared over 75,000 indictments and successfully prosecuted cases against organized crime during
the Tammany Hall era.
1915-23: "After Whistler, I don't know any American painter more original and personal
than Walter Beck," is how one art critic from the 1920s described the artist who made 964 Pelhamdale his home and studio.
Otto Walter Beck moved from his native Ohio and, living and working at this home, took the New York art world by storm. His paintings
were widely exhibited, including at the Smithsonian Museum (which later acquired them). Beck discovered a revolutionary
form of painting (which he called the starch-film technique) in his basement studio at 964 Pelhamdale and later experimented
here with landscape design before starting the famous "Innisfree Gardens" in Millbrook, New York.
Today,
964 Pelhamdale Avenue has been faithfully preserved by its current owners, who have re-opened fireplaces, restored woodwork
and updated the home's kitchen and baths, while protecting the home's architectural character. Situated on a 3/4 acre
parcel, this magnificent home reflects its incredible history. Make this landmark your home. Offered for sale
at $1,395,000.
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