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Hammersmith Farm is an imposing Gilded Age “summer cottage” built by the Auchincloss family. The 28-room main house was constructed on a piece of land that was originally called Hammersmith Island. The estate name is believed to be derived from the hometown of William Brenton, a governor of the Rhode Island colony who had a farm on the site in 1640. The estate is a majestic reminder of the wealth and social standing of its original owners. The shingled Victorian mansion was the childhood home of former first lady Jackie Kennedy and the site of the reception for her 1953 wedding to then-Senator John F. Kennedy.
The home served as an unofficial summer White House during the brief Kennedy Administration. The acclaimed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted designed the estate gardens. Hammersmith Farm served as a backdrop for scenes in the 1974 movie “The Great Gatsby.” The estate’s 50-acre property was the last working farm in Newport. Once open to the public, the home is now a private residence. The mansion, located on Ocean Drive, can be viewed from the road.
