Of all the large homes I’ve posted since beginning my blog last August, this 122-acre estate in Lakewood, Colorado, is one of my favorites.  The scale of the house struck me immediately.  It encompasses 26 rooms and 14,000 square feet of air-conditioned space, yet still it is warm and inviting.  Outside, an understated pagoda portico with iron grilles aims to charm instead of wow.  Why don’t we see these entries anymore?  Inside, rooms and furnishings are human sized and actually look livable.  Ceilings are high, but not giant.  The home is luxurious, but not a mausoleum.  I want to sit by one of the 11 fireplaces and have afternoon tea (or a glass of merlot).

The history of this home is fascinating as well.  Designed by renowned Denver architect Burnham Hoyt and built in 1932, it was bought in 1951 by one of the original investors in Vail resort, Denver oil man Vernon “Moose” Taylor Jr., and his wife Ann Bonfoey Taylor.  (According to the Denver Post, they met after Ann sold Vernon a pair of ski pants at an East Coast ski resort.)  During their lives here, they hosted numerous world luminaries, including Henry Kissinger, Gerald Ford, and Great Britain’s Prince Phillip and Princess Anne.

Listed for $27.7 million, the estate is 20 minutes from downtown Denver and features 11 bedrooms (the master suite has his and her bedrooms), nine baths, formal gardens, alfalfa meadows, a pool, tennis court, stables, a dressage ring, cottages for household and grounds staff, 1,110 feet of shoreline on exclusive Ward lake, an adorable lakeside guest house, and 270-degree views of the mountains.

The video is fascinating to watch, because it offers numerous views of the home inside and out, as well as delves into the lives of theTaylors.

For many more photographs and details, visit the listing site of Nancy Wolfe with LIV-Sotheby’s International Realty.

Oh, to have lived–and had your health and loads of money–back in the 1930s. ~Janis Lyn Johnson

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Driveway

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Front

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Front2

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Front3

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Foyer

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Formal-Dining

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Library

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-kitchen

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Master-Suite-His

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Master-Suite-Hers

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Her-Dressing-Room

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Master-Bath

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Garden-Room

Taylor-Estate-Lakewood-CO-Sotheby's-Guest-House

All photographs via Nancy Wolfe with LIV-Sotheby’s International Realty.