Tuesday, May 18, 2021

HIGHPOINT

 

When friends and people I know always find out I grew up by Hershey it always amazes them for some reason. I never did understand why. I will say it was nice being able to be so close to Hershey Park and getting in when it was just around like $20? Heavens know what it is now. The town of Hershey is very pretty, quaint, stately homes, smells of chocolate and what's not to love about streetlights that look like Hershey Kisses?  Many landscaping companies even use cocoa in their tan bark, and the rose gardens at the Hotel Hershey shouldn't be missed. Over the weekend my good friend the Dame Courtney invited me for a private tour of the Highpoint Mansion, which was home to Milton Hershey and his wife Kitty.

While many other big moguls and industrialist of the time in, and some after the Gilded Age, were building huge mansions, Hershey opted for a modest home is size and furnishings. With only 22 rooms and a large front porch, it features elements of both Greek revival and Colonial styles. 

I was able to snap a few pictures secretly, the slick bitch I am.... since no photos in the house were permitted, but the grand staircase features a stunning stained glass window made by the Rudy Glass Company, which is based in York. Hershey liked keeping trades local, and the Rudy Glass Company did all the stained glass not only in Highpoint Mansion, but also in the Hotel Hershey. We know the Mistress adores a good staircase.
The upstairs window in the ceiling.
The billiard room was pretty cool to see with a mural titled "Ivanhoe" by Sir Walter Scott that goes the perimeter of the room. Apparently Hershey used to read his nightly newspapers, have a sniffer, and most times, had a cigar in hand every evening in the billiards.
I know some people don't care for Milton Hershey, and would be correct as Hershey did  some things wrong,  and probably continues to, with slave labor in Cuba with processing sugar...which everyone should be entitled to fair trade pay and salaries. But he did do some commendable things. Not only did Milton Hershey want to built his factory here,  but also wanted to build a town. People thought he was nuts. He went anyhow and planned and built the town of Hershey with house for his workers, post office, churches and schools.  The company and town was a hit. Hershey was not only a candy maker and dreamer, but he was a good businessman and learned from mistakes. He was really one of the first to make a general basic chocolate bar, and sell it for a low price, one everyone could afford. He always gave back half his money to the community for upkeep, and all branches of his company were within walking distance of Highpoint in case he was needed. Hershey and his wife were not able to have children, so they donated millions to invest in a school for orphaned boys called the Hershey Industrial School. To this day,  funds and trust are still intact to keep all orphaned children clothed, fed, cared for, and have an education. When Kitty died, Milton was never the same, and spent most of his time in Cuba. When he returned 7 years later, he only lived on the second floor of Highpoint, and gave the first floor to the country club as a clubhouse. Upon his death, he wanted most of the furnishings to be sold off and money given to the boys orphan school and various other charities. The house is now the offices of the Hershey Trust, hence why most furnishings are not the original. Below is the one room Quaker school Milton Hershey attended. Also on the grounds.

To my knowledge they still give out a chocolate bar after leaving the Chocolate World attraction. But I dare say, I was never a Hershey fan. I'm more a Ghirardelli boy myself.

51 comments:

  1. I was there in the '60s before it was a theme park. No way my parents paid $20 each to take us inside. AND we got free handfuls of Hershey's minis on the way out. I do remember riding the train... And the smell inside the factory!

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    1. In the summer the whole town smells of chocolate.

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  2. Impressive house, shame about the chocolate! A Yank friend of ours once gave me a birthday gift of a tin containing Candy Kisses. We thought they were reminiscent of sweetened ear-wax, so binned the lot and kept the tin... Jx

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    1. I never became a fan of Hershey the candy....but Catherine Hershey was faboo!!!!!!!!!!

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  3. I like cadbury or lindt chocolates better than hershey.

    I remember touring the actual factory as a kid; now forbidden (insurance liability). you get a "simulated" factory tour at hershey park. $41/person for a one day ticket this season.

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    1. Yuck...I can't take cadbury at all. For me that's right there with a Whitman sampler. I do like Lindt truffles but it ends there. Still a Ghirardelli boy...at least till the Vienna trip.

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  4. Interesting history lesson!
    xoxo :-)

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  5. Gira... Girar??? Traitor!

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    1. And he can spell it, the little bastid!

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    2. lmao! when the bastid goes to san fran he comes back with tons of it.

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  6. When I was a kid, we used to take Coke bottles back to the corner store and exchange them for Hershey candy bars! The bars were a nickel then. Things have changes since then, and so has my taste in chocolate! Your photos are lovely. I can only image how gorgeous the house must be in person, sweetpea! xoxo

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    1. That's a great memory. My how life has changed from the simple times. Now everything has to be a struggle these days lambchop.

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  7. Where did orphan girls go? I must admit, I do still love a good Hershey's kiss. I prefer See's candy in general. I do like your pictures, Mads, but at my age and general decrepitude all I see are tripping hazards.

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    1. I'm not familiar with See's candy. I'm a Ghirardelli boy myself.

      I think at the time, there were many more homeless boys in that area then girls for some reason, and I wonder if girls were separated at another place in another town? I believe he later started the Hershey School for boys too, but later had girls also. Three years after Catherine Hershey died, Mr. Hershey gave his entire fortune to both schools.

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    2. I had a colleague some years back who rushed her dog (a golden lab) to the vet because he had eaten an entire 2-pound box of See's chocolate from under the Christmas tree. The vet said not to worry. See's was mostly wax anyway! Still, I don't think I ever passed a See's without going in for a sample and a bagful.

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  8. The House that Chocolate built, eh? I don't like Hershey chocolate myself -- too cheap 'n waxy tasting.

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    1. I prefer Ghirardelli or Godiva myself.

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  9. I love all the fabulous shots of the house! Hershey sounds like one of the last old school millionaire business men who still were civic minded and generous. Thanks for the interesting post!

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  10. The Boyfriend is nuts for Hershey. I should put this on my list of possible trips. He would 'eat' it up. (hee, hee) (oh, yes, I did) Thanks for the lovely guided tour and all that history. It is intriguing. I wonder how much of a control freak he was with how the town evolved. I can't imagine building Utopia - which is many a madman's dream - and then allowing other people to trash it. Thanks, hon. Kizzes.

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    1. During the tour, the guide said it was very well known that Milton and Kitty were very well liked in the town and the surrounding areas. Kitty single handily brought the high fashion of New York couture to the Harrisburg area. Milton was very easy going and laid back so is told. He even supplied homes for many of his partners and workers, and gave millions to the orphanage, various charities, and the arts. You two would probably love a small get away to Hershey. A day or two there is enough. There is a lavish spa with cocoa treatments, The Hershey Museum, the Rose Gardens at Hotel Hershey and a fairly decent butterfly arboretum. Then you guys could head to Philly to meet me!!!!!!!!

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  11. Love your sneaky pics. That staircase is made for a Pam Demic entrance! Perhaps with a Hershey's Kiss hat???

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  12. Interesting post, I like Seattle Choc, but in smores Hershery works.
    Coffee is on and stay safe

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  13. I saw that third picture down on your Instagram, which is a great angle btw, and cracked up at the blurp. "There will be a Bar B-Q at Twelve Oaks Tonight!"

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    1. Was that Noxzema Jackson? I saw that too and it made me chuckle.

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  14. Oh my goodness! It has turned into the HUGE CHOCOLATE DEBATE! Leave it to the Mistress to have a delicious debate!! It's chocolate...how does anyone loose??? I don't hate Hershey, but my favorite too is Ghirardelli.

    Never been, but I hear it's quite a quaint town.

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  15. Excellent pictures! You were just about at my place. I thought I caught a whiff of gin......and hot cakes!

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  16. What a beautiful house. I love the staircase, especially the window. Magnificent!
    The story reminds me of the Bournville legacy, here in the midlands.
    Quite a few business owners built villages or towns to accommodate their workers.
    Check out Titus Salt if you get a free minute. He built a beautiful town with all modern amenities for the time.

    A lovely post. Thank you. X

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    1. Thanks for that link! I googled that town of Bourneville and Titus Salt....both very intresting and that town is so charming.

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  17. I like the Hershey's with almonds. Didn't know about the slave labor in Cuba but it hardly surprises me given what I've read about these big companies over the years. I wouldn't blame Fidel and Che if they preferred Nestle Crunch bars.

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    1. That's my favorite piece of Hershey's too. With almonds.

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  18. Such a humble abode. “With only 22 rooms…” I guess by mansion standards that is small? It is a beautiful home, and he seems to have done right by the community. The company town looked out for the welfare of the workers, instead of taking most of their pay for rents and utilities.

    Thanks for the tour.

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    1. That would be small. His counterparts would have been building those huge gilded "summer cottages" of Newport that were massive. In the book I read on Catherine , they were talked about for not constructing a huge estate and least of all where they worked in a place no one heard of. They also were slated to be on the Titanic...but Milton's plans with business changed and cancelled at the last minute. To think, that would have changed history for that town.

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  19. Wonderful pics, and thank you for the history lesson. I'm guessing that there was no school for orphaned girls because society (at that time) would have placed a girls place in a home and not in a trade.
    I like Cadbury the best, but I will never turn down a Hershey bar.

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    1. I suspect you could be right Todd. It wasn't mentioned on the tour nor could I find out anything about a girl homes...I think your guess could be right on.

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  20. That place would look good on you, you'd need more household help.

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  21. I love Hershey's chocolate! Yum!
    And this house is fantastic. What? Only 22 rooms?
    I'd love to visit. So glad you sneaked some pics. That stained glass window IS stunning!
    Road trip, I tell you. Road trip.

    XOXO

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  22. Milton Hershey sounds very much like John Cadbury https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Cadbury who set up an estate for their workers at Bourneville, now a suburb of Birmingham https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Cadbury . Personally I don't like Hershey's or Cadbury's, but then you get what you pay for

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  23. A "modest" 22 rooms. LOL. I'd get lost in that place. He did much good in his lifetime - and beyond. Much, much more than anyone in the Mars family, to my knowledge. I like Hersey - dark.

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  24. Hershey certainly is a beautiful little town. I haven't been since the late 90's when William and I used to go up every other year as a little get-away. We oftened stayed at the stunning Hotel Hershey. We've been to Highpoint and walked the ground but never saw the inside. I once read an intresting book about Catherine Hershey, she was quite a laid back but colorful woman whom Milton adored with all his life. When first married he didn't tell anyone, not even his mother. And your right, she was the single one woman to bring high fashion to the Harrisburg area...prior no one had ever seen the like. At least on that scale. Renowned for her immense flumed hats. Loved your pictures.

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  25. I've become a chocolate snob now that I've tasted proper chocolates. Mr. Hershey's stuff feel like pale imitations of the good stuff.

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    1. I think it will be heard to even enjoy my Ghirardelli after what I had enjoyed in Vieanna.

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  26. Wonderful tour de force...images and story pulled me in immediately....and what a way you have with words!!

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  27. Thanks for the neat pix and the history lesson.

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  28. Gorgeous!!!!! I haven't been to Hershey in years. Last time there was did Hershey Park and I got soaked on the water rapids. Not pretty clothes sticking to a fat lady. And I will never pass up any chocolate...I don't care where it's from.

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  29. The mansion is lovely and you should make an entrance from that staircase. We took our kids to Hershey Park a couple of times. I loved the scent of chocolate in town. X did some business with Hershey and got to eat kisses straight from the production line. I don't remember them sending presents home with him but he might have eaten them on the way. M&M Mars was generous and they mailed gifts to me--stuffed M&Ms and loads of candy bars and a pretty crystal clock I can no longer find a battery for.

    Love,
    Janie

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    1. So the gift of the clock was the gift that didn't keep on ticking?

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    2. Correct, and of course I smiled at your response.

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  30. Ghiardelli is my fave, too. Their dark chocolate squares with raspberry are to die for.

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    1. Their dark chocolate anything is almost better then sex.

      I said ALMOST sista.

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Go ahead darling, tell me something fabulous!