In 1863, aristocrat, Robert W. Pearsall bought a very large tract of land from  Allanson Briggs for the sum of four thousand dollars. Later on he purchased additional land. Pearsall’s estate extended to the south and west sides of Brentwood. Robert Pearsall was a scientific farmer as well as a land baron. He set aside a large portion of his land to be cultivated by John Ryan who he employed to oversee his farm.

Pearsall set apart twelve acres of land to build his magnificent home. It was in the southern part of Brentwood where the Academy of St. Joseph is now located. His residence was modeled after a famous chateau in France. It was a grandiose structure with high ceilings and beautiful inlaid hardwood floors. All of the furnishings of his home were imported from Europe. The interior decorator used beautiful draperies, expensive period furniture, imported Persian rugs, oil paintings and marble statues. The property was landscaped by Frederick Olmstead who designed New York’s Central Park and Prospect Park. Olmstead transformed Pearsall’s grounds into an arboretum. There were beautiful flower beds, flowering shrubs, expansive lawns, lily ponds, an artificial lake and walks lined with pine trees. Unfortunately, Robert Pearsall died one year after he had completed his spectacular estate. Robert Pearsall’s home was atypical in the area. When he arrived here, Modern Times was still an active colony but by the time he built his grandiose estate the colony had all but disappeared. The significance of Pearsall’s home was that it reflected a capitalist philosophy in contrast to the unorthodox colony of Modern Times.

- A. Bennett, Local History Newsletter,  October 2006