Read House and Garden

Description:

• A walk through this 22-room Federal-style house overlooking the river is a walk through New Castle history. Originally the home of George Read II, son of a signer of the Declaration of Independence, it had only two other owners. Rooms from each "period" pay homage to them all. The soaring Palladian windows and intricate composition-work moldings were part of the original design. Don't miss Mr. Read's law office or the second-floor bathing room, to which servants carried hot water. The second owner added the formal gardens in the mid-1800s, now the oldest surviving gardens in Delaware. The third owner's contributions included the European-style rathskeller built in the basement during Prohibition; it's a hoot.

• © Frommer's 2012

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Recommended 2010