Travel from basement to rooftop as you explore the operations of a grand house in the Gilded Age, looking behind the scenes at how it all worked, and the men and women who made it happen, as if by magic.

When it opened in 1901, The Elms was the most fashionable house on the most fashionable street in the most fashionable resort in America.  But behind-the-scenes, a small army of domestic staff lived and worked to service the social whirl of Newport in season.  Dumb-waiter, call box, coal tunnel, laundry room, steamy kitchen and other functional spaces occupied a significant portion of the house.  But these work spaces were isolated from ballroom and dining room, the modern machinery hidden by the 18^th century French-style building. The work took place out of sight, and so the people who worked were invisible.

But crisp linens, gleaming floors and towering soufflés were not produced effortlessly.  Maintaining the illusion took the hard work of a staff of more than 40 men and women.  The magic depended on them.

Visitors on this unique tour will walk through the kitchens, coal cellar and boiler room,laundry rooms and wine cellar, along the way hearing the personal stories of the people who toiled there.  Then climb the back staircase to the third-floor staff quarters, and finally step out onto the roof for a spectacular view of the ten-acre estate, its sunken garden, and Newport Harbor beyond.