A Fresh Perspective on Historic Newport Estate Living

The historic country estate Windswept is an entrancing beauty. But that’s not the best thing about it. The centuries-old home and garden, set on Newport, Rhode Island’s oceanfront historic district, possesses a compelling honesty. From its 18^th-century foundation to its lush gardens, the well-loved home and its setting are deeply true to one another.

“This is very much an agrarian country estate,” says Nick Fobes, a landscape architect and partner at Hoerr Schaudt, a Chicago-based firm. “It’s very honest to the property, the style.”

When Fobes and Doug Hoerr, a founder of Hoerr Schaudt, were asked to update the outdoor architecture of the swimming pool, they were excited. Then the homeowners, a couple with young adult children, invited the landscape architects to walk the property. Their original project—a simple update of the pool to better pair it with the existing pool house—soon blossomed into a gentle restoration of four acres.

Their work created several enchanting outdoor “rooms” for enjoyment and exploration—in effect, a garden with many rooms.

On that first visit, Fobes and Hoerr saw right away how some simple moves could truly marry the property with the house. A wide view of the acreage showed that some of the areas could use more definition. “The majority of the bones of the landscape were there, with an amazing fieldstone wall dividing the property in half,” Fobes says.

As their eyes moved around the landscape, the men saw opportunities. As Fobes says, “Sometimes it takes a fresh perspective.” For one, it was clear that driving into the parking court didn’t allow much of a view of the house. “The house is so charming,” says Fobes, who, along with Hoerr, realigned the driveway so that visitors could see more of the historic façade (which also created more parking spaces). The gambit worked beautifully: “It was a big visual and functional win,” admits the landscape architect.  

In the pool area, Fobes ultimately added a pavilion and hot tub, greatly increasing its functionality and the experience of the swimming pool. As the crew worked, they noticed an uneven transition from pool to open lawn. “The energy sort of bled out,” Fobes says. Today, a walled garden with distinctive white fencing holds a perennial flower and vegetable garden. This is a treat for the homeowners, who enjoy entertaining and picking vegetables for cooking. On one side of the perennial garden, a large Japanese maple displays lacy green foliage in spring before turning a deep burgundy come summer.

Off the garage court was another existing garden, this one more formal, calling for attention. “It was very tired; we refreshed it,” Fobes says. To reinforce the formality, the crew planted lilac tree standards, which Fobes describes as “shrubs on a stick,” with very fragrant blossoms that bloom in the spring. Based on geometry, form, and elegance, the traditional gardens recall classical aesthetics while serving contemporary life.

Because the family is very active and two generations frequently come home in the summer, the clay tennis courts also got an assessment. Eventually a storage shed was erected. The chain-link fencing got a clever update simply by adding wooden rails on top and bottom.

The homeowners are thrilled with their garden of many rooms. Each area is very much loved and experienced. They all have different purposes but express “a similar identity,” says Fobes, adding, “There is a certain level of sophistication to the rooms.” Windswept, distinctly unique, represents a growing movement of homeowners who want to experience their property, not just admire it from afar. “The garden allows the homeowners to live in the landscape,” Fobes says. “It’s about visual interest but also experiencing and interacting with every part of it every day.”