George McKesson Brown Estate: Coindre Hall

By Barbara LaMonica

Assistant Archivist

The George McKesson Brown Estate, aka Coindre Hall is an example of a Gold Coast mansion built around the turn of the century as a summer residence for wealthy entrepreneurs. Coindre Hall’s history is similar to that of other mansions of its time.  Built during an era of great opulence, the estates eventually became untenable due to economic changes and increased taxation. Eventually the mansions and lands were sold off piece by piece by owners and descendants due to unaffordability and disinterest. Many were sold off to developers and torn down, others became public buildings or museums. Many languish as a tug of war between various community factions with differing agendas for their use.

George McKesson Brown, heir to the McKesson Pharmaceutical Company fortune, purchased 135 waterfront acres facing Huntington Harbor. In approximately 1906 Brown commissioned architect Clarence Summer Luce to design a mansion inspired by chateaus he had seen while on vacation with his wife in the Loire Valley. The French Chateau style in architecture became popular in the United States around the late 19th century. This style reflected 16th century French chateaus with gabled roofs, conical towers, spires and arched entryways.

Completed in 1912, the estate was known as West Neck Farm. It was essentially a self-contained manor with cows, chickens, pigs and bees as well as vegetable gardens. The out buildings, such as the garage and chauffeur’s quarters (now Unitarian Fellowship), the boat house, and the water tower were designed to reflect the style of the main mansion.

At first a summer residence, West Neck Farm became a full time residence for the Browns by 1917. However, when Brown became financially strapped after losing much of his fortune after the 1929 stock market crash, he began selling off parcels of the estate’s land. In 1939 he moved into the farmhouse and sold the main house and 33 acres to the Brothers of the Sacred Heart who established a boarding school for boys. West Neck Farm was renamed Coindre Hall in honor of the founder of the religious order and the school remained open until 1971. In 1962 the former garage and chauffeur’s quarters, farmhouse and watertower was sold to the Unitarian Fellowship. In 1964 Brown died with no heirs and since then the fate of the estate has been debated.

In 1972 the Suffolk County Legislature voted to purchase the property for $750,000 with the intention of creating a harbor front park. The main mansion was leased to the Town of Huntington and continued to be used as a recreation and cultural center.

In 1976 the county closed the park due to expensive upkeep. In 1981 the mansion was leased to Eagle Hill School, a school for students with learning disabilities, but by 1989 the school was struggling and had to close. Among proposals for the mansion were an expansion of Heckscher Museum, a repository for County records, a Gold Coast Museum.

In 1980 the boathouse became the home of the Sagamore Rowing Club. During its tenure the rowing club put $73,000 to improve the safety of the boathouse but 70 percent of the building was eventually condemned forcing the rowing club to vacate.

In 1985 the estate was listed on the National and New York State Register of Historic Places and in 1988 placed in the Suffolk County Historic Trust. It was given local landmark status by the Town of Huntington in 1990. In that same year Rep. Rick Lazio proposed the property be sold through a public referendum. In response to this the Alliance for the for the Preservation of Coindre Hall was founded with the goals of protecting, restoring and preserving the entire property. The Alliance fought off several attempt by the Legislature to sell the property. Today the mansion, which has undergone some restoration, now functions as a catering venue operated by Lessings.

In 2020 the Suffolk County Legislature created an Advisory Board to oversee the rehabilitation of the property including the boathouse, the pier and the seawall. In 2023 the boathouse was put on the list of Endangered Places by Preservation Long Island.

However, some residents are concerned that the park’s wetlands will be compromised by the planned renovations. The task ahead is to create a strategy that will include concerns for the natural environment as well as the preservation of an important historical legacy.