The Van Sweringen brother's legacy lives on in Northeast Ohio. "Clanonderry", originally built in the late 1920's to house the Van Sweringen's horses and cars, a blacksmith's shop and apartments, has been converted into a new home that is featured in the April 2010 issue of Architectural Digest Magazine. Ferguson and Shamamian of New York and David Ellison, Architect, of Cleveland collaborated on the recent restoration and additions to architects Small and Rowley's romanticist agrarian folly, known at the time it was built as the "Daisy Hill Farm Group".

2. For Immediate Release: March 10, 2010
Contact: David Ellison 216-631-0557
Contact: Mark Murphy 216-337-9672
Cleveland Architects’ Work Featured In Architectural Digest Magazine
The Van Sweringen brother’s legacy lives on in Northeast Ohio. “Clanonderry”, originally built
in the late 1920’s to house the Van Sweringen’s horses and cars, a blacksmith’s shop and
apartments, has been converted into a new home that is featured in the April 2010 issue of
Architectural Digest Magazine.
Ferguson and Shamamian of New York and David Ellison, Architect, of Cleveland collaborated
on the recent restoration and additions to architects Small and Rowley’s romanticist agrarian
folly, known at the time it was built as the “Daisy Hill Farm Group”.
Cleveland architects, Philip Small and Charles Rowley, active from 1921-1928, may be be�er
remembered for their designs of Shaker Square, Moreland Courts, The Country Club and
The Greenbriar Hotel in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. While the Van Sweringens
were alive, Small and Rowley acted as their architects on many of their private commissions,
including their suite inside the Terminal Tower and their home, Roundwood Manor, also at
Daisy Hill in Hunting Valley. The farm complex includes extensive examples of the work of the
late Gates Mills mason, George Brown – most notably a stone turret and bridges over moat-like
Luce Creek.
The collection of buildings is reminiscent of French manoirs and moated English farmhouses,
with its dovecote tower, stone bridges and almost fortified courtyard. A�er the Van Sweringen’s
deaths the property was purchased and occupied by first the Hanna family and later by
several members of the O’Neill family, former owners of the Cleveland Indians baseball team
and Leaseway Transportation Corporation.
In the 1990’s the buildings began to fall into disrepair. The village of Hunting Valley made
special provisions to allow their redevelopment as historic properties with the hope that they
would be preserved for future generations. The current owners bought the property in
July 2000.
In July 2001 local architect David Ellison, retained as the Architect of Record by the new owners
to see the project through to its completion, began to document the existing conditions.
Simultaneously, New York architect Mark Ferguson began to plan for a new home to replace
part of the original group of buildings. During the following years extensive restoration work
was undertaken on the signature-style stonework, the graduated cedar shingle roofing with its
many cupolas and the old stables. Parts of the old complex were razed, while doors, beams and

3. other materials were salvaged and a new house rose in place of the old garages. As the
buildings came back to life and the new home took shape, overgrown landscaping was pruned
back, gardens were restored and new ones were conceived and planted by Maggie Williams of
Brighton, England.
An old circular horse-watering trough marks the axial centerline of the main barn and new
breakfast room window, linked across a courtyard to the Van Sweringen’s old hunting lodge
and paddock. An original fountain was restored at the front door of the lodge. High above the
entrance to the stables, a clock tower finally had its clock installed. The long neglected
weathervanes were restored, as was the unique stone roof of the round tower-like structure
at the front gate. Ms. Williams’ genius in kni�ing the landscape and buildings into a cohesive
whole emerged as new garden areas took shape around the new house. A lawn flanked by an
allée of pleached (braided) Linden trees makes a formal statement in the midst of the lush
foliage of the more intimate garden and patio spaces that surround the house.
As important as the buildings and new gardens are to the project, it would have fallen far short
of its achievement had the mother-daughter Interior Design team of Pat Brownell and Anne
Ames not brought their expertise to make the new house into a home.
The Owner of the property, who commissioned the project and took on the role of General
contractor, commented, “Ferguson’s office provided the basic design direction for us, while
David Ellison helped us develop ideas and carry them out. We couldn’t have done the project
without each of the players, including Pat and Anne, and my project manager, Mark Murphy,
who coordinated the bidding and contracting process. I think we maximized the value of what
each person brought to the table – and we had a lot of fun at the same time.”
In speaking of the project, Mark Ferguson said, “David Ellison was essential to the success of
the project. Not only did he share our deep experience with traditional architecture, but he
shared our values, our vision and our dedication to our client.”
Maggie Williams added, “It’s very helpful to be able to liaise with someone locally, who
empathizes with the vision of the house and garden that I’m trying to create.”
The end result is a profound testament to the imagination and commitment of the current
Owners and to the successful collaborative work of Williams, Brownell and Ames, Ferguson,
Ellison and Murphy in preserving this unique piece of the region’s architectural heritage.
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