Cliff Walk Trail Marker #2

The Chanler- Cliff Lawn
Built: 1870-1873

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The Chanler was designed for New York Congressman, John Winthrop Chanler, and his wife, Margaret Astor Ward (great-granddaughter of John Jacob Astor- the first multimillionaire in America), as a summer home. The house cost approximately $300,000 at the time of construction. The Chanler family hosted a variety of notable figures while in Newport including, Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. “Cliff Lawn”, as the property became known as, stayed in the Chanler family for approximately 50 years.

After the family sold the property, it changed hands many times. It housed the Tolethorpe School for Girls, was a summer home of Bishop Francis Patrick Keough, operated as an apartment building for Naval officers, and also was a historical museum at one point.

While operational as an apartment building, a fire occurred causing damage to the entire third floor level of the structure on October 28, 1944. After the necessary repairs were made, the building opened as a hotel. Cliff Lawn, as a hotel, consisted of 30 rooms. The hotel was sold in 1956 and officially renamed Cliff Walk Manor.

The property remained as Cliff Walk Manor until 2000, when it changed ownership once more. Detroit businessman, John Shufelt, bought the property and closed the hotel for a three year long renovation project. Cliff Walk Manor was reopened in 2003 as The Chanler at Cliff Walk and remains as such to this day.