The Lynnewood Hall Preservation Foundation in Elkins Park announced that today, December 19, marks the 125th anniversary of the newly completed Lynnewood Hall’s opening by the Wideners to friends and family for the very first time.

The Hall “would have been bustling with staff preparing for ‘One of the most brilliant social events of the season’ as described by the Philadelphia Inquirer on December 20th 1899,” the LHPF said in a post. “More than 400 were in attendance for a ‘musical tea’ while the famed Madame Gadski, Frauline Frieda Siemens, and the New York Symphony Orchestra enchanted guests with delightful music and ambiance.”

The LHPF noted that more than 70 pictures of the house from her golden days have been uploaded to Patreon.

“They serve as part of our inspiration moving forward as we turn back the hand of time and restore one of the great palaces of our Nation, the ‘Last American Versailles’,” the Foundation said.

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