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These Are The 10 Biggest Governor’s Mansions In America
How was the Movoto Real Estate Blog able to narrow down a list of the top 10 governors’ homes in the country? Well, for crying out loud, this is America, so we decided to do it the American way.
We like football and big trucks and loud fireworks and giant fast-food soft drinks we can’t finish. Since as of posting time not a single governor returned our calls to skirmish NFL style, we decided to look at which houses are the coolest—i.e., the biggest—because, well, America.
We looked at governors’ mansions in 44 states (some states no longer have one, so they were immediately declared lame and tossed out of the running) and compared their total square footage.
Now you can call up your friend in another state and say “Ha! My Governor’s mansion is bigger than yours!” You’ll be glad you did.
Here’s which states (and behemoth homes) came out on top.
1. Illinois Executive Mansion: Lincoln Loved Big Hats, His State Loves Big Houses
Location: 5th and Jackson St., Springfield, IL
Size: 50,000 sq. ft.
Estimated value: $5.4 million
Illinois governors have been calling this mansion home since 1855, and those of you who are actually paid attention in history class will know that this means, and yes, President Lincoln himself visited this mansion.
You can still visit the Lincoln bedroom, and see a bust of him that he actually posed for! Where else can you get that? The mansion hasn’t been the governor of Illinois main home for several years, but it’s still used occasionally.
Not only is this house the largest on the list, but it’s a good 20,00 square feet bigger than number two. Illinois, you win this one.
2. Maryland Government House: Down By The Bay, Where The Big Houses Grow
Location: State Circle, Annapolis, MD
Size: 38,000 sq. ft.
Estimated value: $7 million
Built in the Georgian style, this Annapolis home has been the residence of Maryland’s governors since 1870. Bucking the trend of other governor’s not living in their proper mansions, Maryland’s current governor, Martin O’Malley, and his family actually live in this historic home.
Famous visitors have included the likes of Mark Twain, Queen Elizabeth, and Sugar Ray Leonard. In 1990, a $169,000 (bought with public funds, not taxpayer money) Victorian fountain was installed in the mansion’s gardens. When even the fountains cost that much, you know a place has class.
3. North Carolina Executive Mansion: Raleigh’s Regal Mansion Is The Real McCrory
Location: 1 East Edenton St., Raleigh, NC
Size: 30,000 sq. ft.
Estimate value: $8.4 million
This Queen Anne Victorian mansion was completed in 1891, and is North Carolina’s third such mansion built in Raleigh. North Carolina’s mansion is also one of 13 states that allow inmates (after a screening process) to participate in a residence work program to help with maintenance and upkeep on the mansion.
In 1973 an Executive Mansion Fine Arts Committee was formed to help preserve the mansion and assist in picking out art and other objects to don the mansion’s interior. Think of them like the Indiana Jones Committee of North Carolina.
4. Pennsylvania Governor’s Residence: Susquehanna River Waters Sprout Pennsylvania Flowers
Location: 2035 North Front St., Harrisburg, PA
Size: 28,500 sq. ft.
Estimated value: $3.5 million
Thirty-two rooms. Let that sink in for a bit. That’s 31 rooms you can dedicate to your video game collection, and still a room for your laundry.
This Pennsylvania mansion, which calls the banks of the Susquehanna River home, was finished in 1968, making it one of the newest mansions to crack the top 10.
In 2000 the mansion received a nice “green” touch with an expansion of its gardens, which host over 15,000 visitors every year. The Penn’s Woods area is a special showcase that displays historically important plants that are native to Pennsylvania.
5. Colorado’s Boettcher Mansion: The Mile-High Mansion
Location: 8th Avenue and Logan St., Denver, CO
Size: 26,000 sq. ft.
Estimated value: $7.9 million
This 26,000 square foot home has been used by various governors of Colorado since 1960, though the house was original built in 1908 (a 2006 renovation added a visitor’s center and gardens) before it was donated (and eventually) accepted by the state. Mr. Boettcher was also a fan of model ships—two of which still make port in the mansion.
If you could be a fly on any wall though, this mansion just might be the one. President Truman was known to play piano here, and many other presidents, including Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson, all set foot here.
6. Louisiana Governor’s Mansion: The Tallest Chocolate Chip Cookie Mansion
Location: 1001 Capitol Access Rd., Baton Rouge, LA
Size: 25,000 sq. ft.
Estimated value: $2.5 million
This southern Baton Rouge-located 25,000 square foot mansion was built in 1963 under Governor Jimmie Davis, who only got to live in it for a few months before his term ended. Governor Jindal now lives there with his family, and his children are the youngest to ever live there. Not too shabby a house to grow up in, right?
Not only is Louisiana home to the sixth biggest mansion in the country though, this mansion is also the tallest in the nation, coming in at 450 feet tall. Take that, other states!
Of course, the mansion’s menu includes famous Louisiana dishes such as gumbo and jambalaya. The mansion is also always stocked with chocolate chip cookies; Governor Jindal’s favorite.
7. Georgia Governor’s Mansion: A True Georgia Peach Of A House
Location: 391 West Paces Ferry Rd., Atlanta, GA
Size: 24,000 sq. ft.
Estimated value: $8.5 million
Three floors. 30 rooms. 30 columns of 24-foot high California red wood. 18 acres. Atlanta.
Of course, we’re talking about Georgia’s own governor’s mansion, home to Governor Nathan Deal and his wife, Sandra, the eighth governor to live in the mansion since it opened in 1968.
The inner decorations of the house were put together by a 70-member fine arts committee while the house was being built, and it includes state-owned museum-quality collection that doesn’t change from governor to governor. Art isn’t partisan, after all.
8. West Virginia Governor’s Mansion: Everybody Knows The West Is The Best
1716 Kanawha Boulevard East, Charleston, WV
Size: 21,000 sq. ft.
Estimated value: $840,000
Take that, Virginia! West Virginia represent!
West Virginia’s mansion placed eighth on our list, with 21,000 square feet dedicated to the living space of your top state elected official.
And no, your eyes aren’t deceiving you. The foyer walls of the mansion aren’t wallpaper as they might appear, but are painted original designs. The ballroom also include a white marble mantle from an old Irish Castle. Now that’s some lucky (and royal) history.
9. Wisconsin Executive Residence: This Wisconsin House Is On Fire
Location: 99 Cambridge Rd., Madison, WI
Size: 20,777 sq. ft.
Estimated value: $6.6 million
Always wanted a home that has 13 bathrooms? Well, brush up on your political science and consider running for governor of Wisconsin.
Located in Madison, this 20,777 square foot sits on over four acres of land and greets 20,000 visitors to Wisconsin every year. Originally a private home before being sold to the state in 1949, this lakeside residence is something else.
Fireplaces? Is seven of them enough to light your fire? We would imagine so.
10. New York State Executive Mansion: The Empire State’s Groovy Mansion
Location: 138 Eagle St., Albany, NY
Size: 20,000 sq. ft.
Estimated value: $2 million
Last but certainly not least, the great Empire State manages to sneak in at number 10 with its own executive residence.
Built in 1856, New York’s gubernatorial digs are one of the oldest mansions to make the list. But, with houses, as with people, it’s important to respect your elders.
While the mansion doesn’t have its own proper art collection, it does host artwork from local museums. Also, it’s quite a green machine, being the first building in New York State to receive a LEED Gold Certification.
Silver Medals
Your state didn’t make the list? That’s okay, don’t be sad. Here’s the full list. And might we suggest voting for a governor who thinks a little bit bigger next time?
Methodology
The valuations for each mansion were arrived at by averaging the price per square foot of five different area houses of similar size.
Of course, most of these mansions are quite a lot larger than any near by properties so such estimations are simply that: Our best estimates based on similar real estate. Estimates do not take into account any art or galleries included in the mansions, nor do they factor in furnishings or grounds, so don’t get that checkbook out quite yet.
All mansion sizes came from Ballotpedia, except where otherwise noted.
