Asheville’s Biggest Attraction Adds *New* Vintage Clothing Collection

As part of the Costume Society Symposium last weekend, we all went to what is generally considered to be Asheville’s largest attraction, the Biltmore Estate.   Ever since the house was opened to the public in 1930 it has been highly publicized as one of the “must sees” of the area.

Built by one of the heirs to the Vanderbilt fortune, George Vanderbilt, the house was completed in 1895.  And it is huge, with over 250 rooms, it was a masterpiece of Gilded Age Show-offery.  And it is still owned by the builder’s descendants, and still has the original furnishings.

One of the reasons the CSA chose to visit Biltmore was because they have recently added clothing  to the room exhibits.  This was part of a larger, over-all effort to make the rooms more lived-in.  I’ve visited this house numerous times, starting with a 6th grade field trip in 1967, and it was true that it was very hard to imagine that people actually lived here.  The effort to make the house look more like a home includes such things as family photos scattered about, paper and pen on a writing desk, professionally made fake food on the tea cart, and clothing props.

I really don’t have a problem with clothing props; I actually think they can add a lot to a museum house.  The problem at Biltmore is that nowhere is it mentioned in the guidebook that the props being used are not original to the house or to the Vanderbilt family.  We were very lucky to have a visit from Biltmore’s curator before we went to the house, and she explained that all of the clothing items on display were new acquisitions.

While there is quite a bit of the Vanderbilt family’s clothing left from the 1920s and later, there is no clothing from the time period that the house interprets.  Thus, when they decided to display clothing, they had to start from scratch and build a collection of 1895-1900 clothing.  And they have done a beautiful job of it.  The displays are well done, and do actually give the house a more homelike feel.

Still, it seems a bit off, perhaps because the average visitor is going to go away thinking they have seen the Vanderbilt’s clothing.  I  say the average visitor, because some people are going to get the information from the tour guides.  And this leads to the second problem I have with Biltmore – the prices.

Believe it or not, the price of an adult ticket is $55.  And to make it even worse, to take a guided tour where you really learn something, you have to pay an additional $17.  It just seems to me that $72 is a bit much to see even the most magnificent home.  And there is also the cost of lunch (lots of great places to eat on site) and drinks (they have a winery) and souvenirs, and this is one pricey day in the mountains.

So the people on the tours might possibly be told that the clothing is not original, but the cheap-skates who try to muddle through with their $55 ticket and small tour booklet are going to tell their friends to be sure to see Mrs. Vanderbilt’s lovely gowns.

Just one more observation:  even though we had paid for a tour, we did not get to see all of the rooms.  There were at least two rooms that were just on a newly make tour, and so we were whisked by those, as were most visitors.  And while the group I was in had a very good guide who answered all questions and pointed out a lot of interesting things, others were not so lucky, and complained that their guides did not even mention the newly installed clothing at all!

But, I will say the the Biltmore Company is constantly working on restoration, and that they do it right.  That is not cheap.  And they are one of the region’s largest employers, with around 1800 people working for them.  Operating costs have to be high.  Still, with all they have going on – the house, the winery, an inn (rooms start at $200 a night), a whole range of licensed home decorative objects for sale, and a new shopping area, seems like the cost of admission could be a bit more in line with that of other private historic structures.

Still, if someone were to ask, I’d have to say that yes, you should see this house at least once.  Go, do the tour, drink the wine and try to imagine that the Vanderbilts are picking up the tab.