Martha’s Vineyard

Subterms

    Latest story

    188 Shares82 Views

    The Creator of ‘Arthur’ Just Listed His Storybook Mansion in Martha’s Vineyard for $6.9 Million

    by

    If you grew up watching the animated sitcom Arthur or reading the beloved books, get ready to experience a little nostalgia in real estate form. The longtime Martha’s Vineyard home of Arthur creator Marc Brown and his wife, artist and author Laurene Krasny Brown, is up for grabs for the first time in 37 years. Asking price? $6.9 million.

    Tucked inside Pilot Hill Farm—a tightly held enclave known for its privacy, farm access, and walkable beach—the nearly eight-acre compound feels like something out of a picture book. Fitting, given who lived here.

    The heart of the property is a historic farmhouse that was built in 1730 but has been lovingly restored over the years. It showcases a myriad of delightful original features, such as hand-painted Siberian elm floors, cozy fireplaces, gunstock posts, and a classic Dutch door. There’s no shortage of modern touches, either: A sprawling great room, a screened-in porch overlooking a saltwater pool, and a bright, updated kitchen make the home as functional as it is charming.

    RELATED: A Dr. Seuss Collaborator’s Former N.Y.C. Townhouse Can Be Yours for $13.5 Million

    Wildflower meadows, stone walls, and a tranquil pond create an enchanting backyard.

    Marc Fairstein/ozoroco

    Spread out across the grounds are a handful of equally enchanting outbuildings: an artist’s studio, a three-car carriage house with a second studio upstairs, and a guesthouse with two more bedrooms and a soaring double-height living room.

    As both author and illustrator, Brown has long drawn inspiration from the world around him. The aardvark’s bedroom in Arthur was loosely based on his own son’s childhood room in Hingham, Massachusetts, The Wall Street Journal reported. And in his most recent animated series Hop on HBO Max, a moss-covered stone bridge on this very Vineyard property sparked the idea for a hidden troll’s home, tucked away in the woods. Outside, it’s all wildflower meadows, stone walls, and shady trees—plus a pond, a babbling brook, and gardens that feel more like a private arboretum than a backyard. Like much of Brown’s storytelling, the landscape here lives somewhere between reality and imagination.

    RELATED: Former Celtics Co-Owner Jim Pallotta Lists His Sprawling Massachusetts Estate for $38 Million

    The property has not one but two artist studios.

    Danielle Mulcahy/Tea Lane Associates

    “This is a natural haven in a magical setting,” notes the listing, which is represented by Alexis Holden and Elle Lash of Tea Lane Associates/Forbes Global Properties. For fans of Arthur—or anyone craving an island retreat with history, heart, and serious creative pedigree—this storybook sanctuary might just be the perfect next chapter.

    That said, it arrives amid a wave of high-profile activity on the Vineyard. In May, the Obamas’ former summer rental—now owned by famed architect Norman Foster—returned to the market with a $39 million price tag. Set on 30 acres in Chilmark, the estate blends presidential history with contemporary design, having undergone an extensive renovation after Foster purchased it in 2011. And last year, Diane Sawyer’s waterfront compound in nearby Tisbury sold for $23.9 million after just two months on the market. Best get in quick if you want Brown’s pad.

    Click here to see more photos of Marc Brown’s Martha’s Vineyard home.

    Marc Fairstein/ozoroco

    Authors

    Abby Montanez

    Abigail Montanez is a staff writer at Robb Report. She has worked in both print and digital publishing for over half a decade, covering everything from real estate, entertainment, dining, travel to…

    Read More More

    More stories

    • 150 Shares159 Views

      in Luxury

      The Obamas’ Former Martha’s Vineyard Getaway Hits the Market for $39 Million

      by

      This iconic Martha’s Vineyard estate—once the Obamas’ go-to summer sanctuary—is back on the market, asking $39 million. Represented by Maggie Gold Seelig of MGS Group Real Estate and Brian Dougherty of Corcoran Property Advisors, the listing has both an architectural pedigree and presidential provenance. 

      Set on nearly 30 private acres in Chilmark, the estate hugs the shoreline of Tisbury Great Pond and delivers serious Vineyard magic: rolling lawns, meadows, and waterfront views. The Obama family rented the home for their summer getaways between 2009 and 2011, reportedly paying $50,000 a week, according to The Wall Street Journal. It’s also where President Barack Obama addressed the nation after Hurricane Irene and honored the late Senator Ted Kennedy, Architectural Digest reported. Years later, the former first family would return to the island to put down more permanent roots, purchasing a $14.85 million estate in nearby Edgartown in 2019.

      At the heart of the property is a gracious 7,000-square-foot main house—classic New England on the outside, tailored luxury inside. Think vaulted ceilings, stone fireplaces, wraparound porches, and a dining room with knockout water views. Arrive via a gated drive, passing a 150-year-old Pennsylvania barn clad in cedar shingles, and it’s hard not to feel like you’ve stumbled into an East Coast fairytale. 

      RELATED: Al Pacino’s Former Beverly Hills Rental Home Is Up for Grabs at $16 Million

      Foster has renovated the property, including the main house, since he bought it over a decade ago.

      Evan Joseph Photography

      But here’s where it gets really interesting: the estate’s current owner is none other than vaunted British architect Norman Foster, the mind behind London’s Gherkin and Wembley Stadium. Foster was struck by the estate’s pastoral approach and the authenticity of its architecture, describing it as a “classic New England house that had grown from historic farming roots,” The WSJ reported. What made it special, he added, was its ability to feel remote and expansive while still sitting in the heart of Martha’s Vineyard. 

      Since acquiring the property in 2011 for $22.4 million, Foster, the founder and chairman of Foster + Partners, has injected his signature style into the compound, most notably with the sleek, contemporary pool and poolhouse he designed to contrast the classic clapboard main home. Modernism meets Martha’s Vineyard? Yes, indeed, and somehow, it works. 

      RELATED: Bill Gates’s Former Waterfront Mansion in Florida Can Be Yours for $23.5 Million

      Vast walls of glass bring the outside to the inside of the Foster-designed poolside pavilion.

      Evan Joseph Photography

      Scattered across the grounds are a five-bedroom guesthouse, a boathouse with a private dock, a design studio, a gym, tennis and basketball courts, an apple orchard, equestrian paddocks, and staff housing. It’s a compound built for both deep relaxation and active living—with just enough gravitas to host a head of state. 

      While Martha’s Vineyard’s luxury market has cooled since the pandemic peak, properties with notable provenance continue to draw interest. Case in point: Diane Sawyer’s waterfront retreat sold for $23.9 million in late 2023 after just two months on the market and for just shy of its $24 million ask. Meanwhile, the island’s median home price dipped to $1.1 million in April, down more than 30 percent from the previous year. 

      Click here to see more photos of Blue Heron Farm.  

      Evan Joseph Photography

      Authors

      Abby Montanez

      Abigail Montanez is a staff writer at Robb Report. She has worked in both print and digital publishing for over half a decade, covering everything from real estate, entertainment, dining, travel to…

      Read More More

    • 75 Shares159 Views

      in Vacation Homes

      18 Point Inner Way in Photos

      by

      Published on February 28, 2024

      Andrew Azoulay/ Wallace & Co. Sotheby’s International Realty

      Authors

      Abby Montanez

      Abigail Montanez is a staff writer at Robb Report. She has worked in both print and digital publishing for over half a decade, covering everything from real estate, entertainment, dining, travel to…

      Read More More

    • 150 Shares199 Views

      in Luxury

      Diane Sawyer Is Asking $24 Million for Her Coastal New England Oasis

      by

      A sprawling seaside compound owned by veteran news anchor Diane Sawyer has popped up for sale in the coastal Massachusetts enclave of Martha’s Vineyard.

      Nestled amid windswept dunes directly overlooking water views from every vantage point, on two separate parcels of land tucked between Vineyard Sound and Lake Tashmoo, the estate known as “Chip Chop” just hit the market for $24 million, as first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

      Records show the TV broadcast journalist and her late film director husband Mike Nichols paid $5.3 million back in 1995 for the property, and subsequently embarked on an extensive restoration in collaboration with Tate Builders. Spanning 20 acres, the seaside spread is showcased by a nearly 5,000-square-foot main house boasting three bedrooms and numerous other structures, all with access to a combined mile of private shoreline.

      Originally designed in the late 1930s for noted stage actress Katharine Cornell by Neoclassical architect Eric Gugler—most known for his remodeling work on the West Wing of the White House during President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration—the wood-shingled, New England-style main house was ultimately completed in the mid-1940s.

      Other buildings include a two-bedroom caretaker’s cottage and two modern beach cottages affectionately referred to as “The Shacks” because of the fishing shacks they replaced, plus two more detached guest bedroom suites known as the Pond and Ocean pavilions. There’s also a swimming pool and Har-Tru tennis court on the premises.

      According to WSJ, the 77-year-old anchor known for programs such as ABC World News Tonight, Good Morning America and 20/20, is selling because the rhythms of summer have changed” as her family has grown, and “there is less free time for long visits to the island.”

      “Five grandchildren have run through the halls, learned to swim in the warm waters, gathered moss in the forest,” she said. “At Thanksgiving, both enormous fireplaces in the great room give off warmth and golden light. We have always felt so lucky to be together in this magic place.”

      The listing is held by Mark Jenkins of Wallace and Co. Sotheby’s International Realty.

      Click here for more photos of Diane Sawyer’s house. More