The Villa Landor
Since quitting Ithaca after his wife’s death, Willard Fiske had rented the Villa Forini, in Florence. His wish, however, was to own a historic Italian property. Once the Supreme Court decided the McGraw Fiske will case in his favor, his expanded income allowed him to buy a villa. Indeed, he soon discovered and bought the home of the English poet, Walter Savage Landor, in Fiesole, a suburb of Florence. Its historic name was the Villa Gherardesca, and Fiske delighted in rumors that Boccaccio had set some of his scenes on the villa’s grounds. Finding the property in very poor condition, Fiske immediately launched a series of extensive renovations on the house and gardens, and filled the house with fine furnishings imported from the United States and England. Even before the villa was fully restored, Fiske was known throughout the British and American expatriate community as a congenial host.
Villa Gherardesca
In describing his new estate to his mother, Fiske lists his household staff, which included a house cleaner, a Neapolitan cook, a “kitchen boy,” a waiter, and a coachman. He also indicates that his plans for the estate included expanding farm production, wine making, and hothouse gardening.
Walter Savage Landor
Although little known today, Walter Savage Landor (1775–1864) was a much celebrated English poet and satirist. During his hayday (from 1821 to about 1864), Landor hosted a number of English and American luminaries at his villa, including Ralph Waldo Emerson, Charles Dickens and James Russell Lowell. Fiske decided to call his home the Villa Landor, rather than the historic name, the Villa Gheraradesca.
Furnishings
Fiske outfitted his home in Italy in high style, and played host to scores of well-heeled guests. He ordered fine furniture from Horner’s and silverware from Tiffany’s soon after he had purchased the Villa Landor.
Restorations
Willard Fiske describes to his mother the many guests who visited him well before restorations on the house had been completed. He was careful to restore not only the rundown mansion, but the many outbuildings and the spectacular garden and farm.
Villa & Gardens
Alfredo Brogi. The Villa Landor, House and Gardens, April, 1892. Albumen print cabinet card photographs
Willard Fiske hired the prestigious Florentine photographic studio, Brogi, to make a series of photographs of his estate. He then deposited sets of the photographs in the British Library and the Cornell University Library. Brogi's photographs give some sense of the house's scale, as well as that of the garden and greenhouses. From the tower, Fiske had a spectacular view across the entire Arno valley.
Inside the Villa
Library
Willard Fiske’s “studio” at Lungo il Mugnone, Florence, ca. 1895.
Albumen print photographs
During the restoration of the Villa Landor, Willard Fiske kept his library in a “studio” in Florence, away from any construction site hazards. When the restoration was complete, he decided to continue to house his books there.
Clemens Family
Calling cards from Samuel Clemens and his wife, Olivia Langdon Clemens, with messages for Willard Fiske, ca. 1892.
Fiske first met the Clemenses in Hartford, Connecticut, and they renewed their acquaintanceship when the Clemens family moved to Europe in 1891. Fiske helped the family navigate the Italian legal system in renting a neighboring villa.