Stowe House for the Nation

The following report appeared in the New York Times on 5 July 1921.

STOWE HOUSE FOR NATION
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Famous English County Home Sold at auction for £50,000.
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London, July 4.—Stowe House, Buckinghamshire, one of the most famous country homes in England, may become the property of the nation. It belonged to the Duke of Buckingham and Chandos and passed on the death of the third and last Duke in 1889 to Baroness Kinloss. It was sold yesterday by auction to Harry Shaw for £50,000, and he announced that he hoped, with the assistance of his friends, to present it with its magnificent garden and avenue to the nation.

Built in Queen Elizabeth’s time, Stowe House had a façade of 916 feet and 700 acres of pleasure grounds. Its history has been associated with such famous literary men as Sir Richard Temple, Pope, Congreve and Thomson. It has entertained royalties and statesmen without number, and there Queen Victoria, for the only time in her life, held court in a private house.

Moreover, it has been famous for its treasures of art, books and furniture, although many of them have already been sold.