The Otto Kahn and James Burden Mansions - Otto Kahn and Adelaide Wolff were married on January 8, 1896. Commissioning renowned architects C.P.H. Gilbert and J. Armstrong Stenhouse to build their private home, they asked that no expense be spared. "It's a sin to keep money idle...." said Kahn, and so in 1918 their home became one of the largest private houses ever built in Manhattan.
Great simplicity and dignity characterize the exterior which was made of French limestone, imported from St. Quentin. The pilasters decorating the second floor exterior illustrate the beauty implicit in Italian sixteenth century architecture. The interior stair, halls, and entrance are made of caen stone and are done with great care and perspective. The building is modeled after the Papal Chancellery in Rome.
Mr. Kahn was a noted patron of the arts, especially of music, architecture and painting. He frequently invited the public to his home for concerts and exhibitions of his treasures. Otto Kahn had his own music room designed with an Adam's ceiling, made to enable sound to circulate throughout the room effortlessly. Musicians entertained by Otto Kahn include the likes of George Gershwin and Enrico Caruso.
The Convent of the Sacred Heart purchased the mansion in 1934, shortly after Mr. Kahn's death. Today it is home of Sacred Heart's upper and middle school.