We are fortunate to have in our collections the original guest books of Ringwood Manor. The Hewitts were a wealthy and prominent family, and were highly active in both politics and society in the New York City area. Therefore, they had a large social circle and would frequently invite friends, dignitaries, and businessmen to visit them at their summer home. The guests were encouraged to sign their names in the guest book in the Great Hall of Ringwood Manor, forming within the guest books a veritable "who's who" of 19th century world. The Cooper-Hewitt family would sometimes sign the books themselves when arriving at the manor. In addition to signatures, the books contain drawings done by the Hewitts and their guests, poems, jokes, photographs, newspaper clippings, paper scraps, and more. Today, we have four of the Hewitt family's guest books spanning from 1876 to 1932. As part of a generous donation from Edgar and Margery Masinter, all four guest books were recently conserved, and digital scans were made from them, which can be viewed online below. For each book, we have highlighted only a few of the many pages that have the signatures of various well-known individuals as well as interesting artwork, historical items, or photographs.
* Please note that the images are owned by Ringwood Manor and are copyrighted. Reproducing or using images from the Ringwood Manor Guest Books without permission is prohibited.
* Please note that the images are owned by Ringwood Manor and are copyrighted. Reproducing or using images from the Ringwood Manor Guest Books without permission is prohibited.
| 1876-1884 |
- Pg
4-5. 1 shilling notes from the 1760s
- Pg30-32
Painting and ballad of Ringwood
- Pg
56. Candace Wheeler- “Mother of interior design”
- Pg
62. Burton Harrison- Private secretary to Jefferson Davis during the Civil War
- Pg
78. “Captain Sally” sketch
- Pg
85. W. E. Roosevelt- Banker and cousin of Theodore Roosevelt
- Pg
112. Watercolor by Dora Wheeler
- Pg
115. H. F. Kean- Founder of Kean University
- Pg
125. Peter Cooper
- Pg
142. William Webb- Police Superintendent of Washington D.C.
| 1884-1890 |
- Pg
7. Henry Gorringe- Brought Cleopatra’s Needle from Egypt to NYC
- Pg
17. Beatrix Jones- Founding member of American Society for Landscape Architects
- Pg
42. Reginald Ronalds- Rough Rider with Theodore Roosevelt
- Pg
47. Levi P. Morton- Vice President under Harrison
- Pg
51. Helena Modjeska- Polish actress
- Pg
65. John Hay- Secretary of State
- Pg
72. John Proctor- Geologist
- Pg
74. Elsie de Wolfe- Interior designer
- Pg
75. Prince Victor Duleep Singh- Last ruler of Lahore
- Pg
79. Hiram Maxim- Inventor of the automatic machine gun
| 1891-1902 |
- Pg
3. John L. Cadwalader- President of New York Bar Association and Assistant
Secretary of State
- Pg
8. Edward M. Shepard- Politician and Mr. Hewitt’s ward as a child
- Pg
12-13. Caroline King Duer- Writer and editor of Vogue Magazine
- Pg
27. Buffalo Bill Cody- Owner of Wild West show
- Pg
34. Francis Vinton Greene- NYC Police Commissioner and Spanish-American War
officer
- Pg
37. Gifford Pinchot- First Chief of United States Forest Service
- Pg
58. William A. Anthony- Physicist
- Pg
65. Frederick and Margaretta Spedden- Titanic survivors
- Pg
67. Eustace Miles- Winner of Olympic silver medal for tennis in 1908
- Pg
71. Bathing suit drawings
| 1902-1932 |
- Pg
4-7. Photos of Ringwood gardens
- Pg
11. Edith Stuyvesant Vanderilt
- Pg
12. Elisabeth Marbury- First female theater agent
- Pg
19. Edith Wharton- Author
- Pg
22. Robert Means Thompson- President of American Olympic Committee
- Pg
28. Foster M. Voorhees- 30th governor of New Jersey
- Pg
51. Photos of Robert Erskine’s grave
- Pg
57. Photos of Ringwood grounds.
- Pg
57. Philip Roosevelt- Cousin of Theodore and captain during WWI
- Pg
57. Card of Madame Constantine Dumba- Wife of Ambassador to Austria-Hungary