Lindenwald (Kinderhook, NY)

Lindenwald was chosen by Martin Van Buren as his retirement home after the loss of the 1840 election. The house was papered extensively around 1841 and many of the papers survived in the house. These were reproduced by Scalamandre. WRNA installed a paper in the hallways in 1993, in the nursery in June 1996, and performed other consulting duties.

	The house was actually built in 1797 by a Dutchman, Peter Van Ness, and Van Buren visited the house as a young clerk in a local law firm.
	A reproduction of "Paysage A Chasses", a scenic from Zuber, was installed on the east and west walls; the balustrade is a silkscreened reproduction from Scalamandre.
	The newly installed reproductions and the restored antique wallpapers meet at the corners. Paper conservators did the laborious work of restoring the antique scenic.
	In all, over 400 rolls of wallpaper and over 600 yards of border were printed.
	Van Buren was considered a very stylish man and followed current New York fashion, even in the White House, where he was criticized for expensive taste. In his retirement home, the wall decoration he used reflects the shift in the 1840's to a more subdued palette; the widest border in the house was only 3" or so, and many of the patterns were small.

Contact: Martin Van Buren National Historic Site, Route 9H, Kinderhook, NY, 12106, tel. 518-758-9689

For more information on Lindenwald please visit the National Park Service.