Abandoned Hudson Valley Mansion Sold at Auction

An abandoned Hudson Valley mansion was sold at auction this week for just a fraction of it's original value. According to Town and Country, Wyndcliffe Castle in Rhinebeck went to the highest bidder for $120,000. The winning bidder's name has not been released and will remain anonymous.

The 24 room mansion once had just shy of 8,000 square feet of living space. It was abandoned in the 1950's. A man by the name of Michael Sanford attempted to fix it up in the early 2000s but didn't finish the job and the home was sold off via bankruptcy.

The home is thought to be the origin of the phrase "keeping up with the Joneses." Around the time of construction 1853, wealthy families from the city were increasingly moving to the Hudson Valley and surrounding communities. The construction of Wyndcliffe is thought to have raised the bar on extravagant homes in the area, leading to other rich families to out do one another. Pulitzer prize winning author Edith Wharton's aunt, Elizabeth Jones had the home built.