15 100-Year-Old Houses That Haven't Aged a Day

Known by locals as Nutt's Folly, this antebellum mansion built for Mississippi natives Haller and Julie Nutt represents a stunning architectural and visual achievement in the Old South. Now a museum, the oldest octagonal house in America boasts an eight-sided floor plan and a Byzantine-style dome that commanded as much attention and admiration at the time of its construction in 1859 as it does in the present day. 

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Despite the Scottish name that Alfred Davis bestowed on the home, Dunleith in historic Natchez is a true southerner. The antebellum mansion and plantation, rebuilt in 1856 after the original home burned down, boasts a carriage house, barn, poultry house and greenhouse, all situated on a sprawling 40-acre estate that is open to the public for guided history tours.

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Formerly the home of activist Molly Brown, who survived the sinking of the Titanic, this Denver dwelling has likewise survived its 135-year-old history and lives to tell the tale. Dating to the 1880s, Brown's residence has since been converted into a museum filled with unmissable exhibits that illustrate Brown's life in Victorian-era Denver.

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"Go big, then go home" seems to be the philosophy behind this palatial property in Kansas City, built in 1914 for lumber magnate Mack B. Nelson. The sixteen bedrooms, eight baths, pool house, and basketball court of the 14,661-square-foot abode are all built around a central atrium. Lit by a movable skylight, the grand home is sure to leave visitors starstruck for days.

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Built in 1874, this Hartford home has its distinguished former residents to thank for its storied past. Literary luminary Samuel Clemens, better known as Mark Twain, once occupied the Gothic-style house along with his family. Today, bookworms and architecture buffs can admire the East Indian motifs in the drawing room, the elegantly embossed dining room, and—of course!—the library.

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Despite its moniker as "Meek Mansion," this historic Victorian home in California is an imposing structure to behold, containing between 23 and 27 rooms between the residence and carriage house. The former resident of the palatial abode, one William Meek, was no shy violet himself. Meek built the home in 1869, and later acquired 3,000 acres of nearby land and planted it with enough cherry trees to earn the community's name of Cherryland.

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Architect Frank Lloyd Wright is responsible for this historic home's quintessentially organic architectural style. The George Barton house, built circa 1904, exemplifies Wright's Prairie School design with overhanging eaves, striking bands of horizontal windows, and an elegant integration with the surrounding landscape that connects residents to the great outdoors from the comfort of their living room.

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First Chief Justice of the United States, John Jay, judged this New York nest to be fit for his family home while he still reigned on the high court, but he was only able to move in following his retirement. The restored interior of the Bedford House, originally built in Katonah in the late 1700s, features over half of Jay's original family furnishings, while the adjacent carriage barn and lush gardens put the family's love of the outdoors on display for modern tourists.

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For the handy home improver, few pleasures compare to the joy of a well-stocked workshop. Take a look at this roundup of some of the best and most essential tools for DIYers of every stripe, and see which items might be missing from your own home improvement headquarters.