Tessa Carla Blog's: Minnesota’s Cedarhurst Mansion Has Hosted 4 Presidents and Countless Weddings

Wednesday 11 November 2020

Minnesota’s Cedarhurst Mansion Has Hosted 4 Presidents and Countless Weddings

A private home and event venue with an important architectural background and an esteemed historical pedigree is on the market in Minnesota for $1.95 million.

Cedarhurst Mansion is a 10,000-square-foot home on 10 acres in the Twin Cities suburb of Cottage Grove, MN. For a buyer in search of a fresh start, the popular venue is an intriguing work-from-home option.

The massive mansion is as distinguished in appearance as the guests who have passed through its front door.

“It looks like the White House, is on the National Historic Register, and has served as a meeting place for prominent figures in business and politics for over 100 years,” says the listing agent, Brett Hildreth.

In 1856, a prominent attorney, Cordenio Severance, built the country home. He went on to expand it in 1886, so his family could spend summers there. He co-founded the American Law Institute and served as president of the American Bar Association.

Exterior of mansion in Cottage Grove, MN
Spacecrafting

The celebrated architect Cass Gilbert expanded the home into its current footprint between 1911 and 1917. Gilbert designed the Woolworth Building in Manhattan, NY, the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, DC, as well as several state capitols and other buildings.

U.S. Presidents Theodore Roosevelt, Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, and William Howard Taft all visited Cedarhurst in the last century.

In addition to these POTUS visits, other important meetings and gatherings have been held in the mansion’s 26 rooms over the years, right up to the present day. Vows have often been exchanged on the grounds.

“There’s just a very rich and vivid history of prominence there. It’s currently one of the premier wedding event venues in the metro area,” Hildreth explains.

The grand ballroom on the main floor seats 200 people. The outdoor space can handle even bigger events, with up to 500 guests.

The estate’s Victorian gardens are popular for wedding ceremonies, and the library and bar area make for perfect cocktail-hour spaces.

While the first floor offers the grand ballrooms, wide-open public spaces, and a commercial kitchen, the second floor is the residential space reserved for a new owner.

There are 11 bedrooms, nine bathrooms, a kitchen, and an abundance of living space. The current owners have called the mansion’s second floor home for the past two decades.

“It’s all very pleasant and also architecturally charming. The ambiance is very pleasant. It’s just a very neat feel,” Hildreth says.

While the main house is in fine shape, several outbuildings also included in the deal could use a little TLC.

“Those buildings largely serve as storage for the different events venue: tables, chairs, groundskeepers’ kind of things,” Hildreth explains. “They offer a kind of unique opportunity to be refurbished and turned into potential venues.”

He says this property is about twice the size of comparable homes in the area, and that the land is at least three times larger, making it a perfect event venue or a possible inn.

Cedarhurst also hosts high teas at present.

Hildreth points out that this single-family home could be turned to many possible uses.

“The current owners have been absolutely great stewards of the house,” he says,“and they’d love to have somebody come in and love it just like they do.”