The Estate
A Civil War general’s rock garden, a shoe magnate’s French manor, and seventy years as MIT’s house in the country.
The general’s garden
General Stephen Minot Weld, Jr. — Civil War hero and descendant of a 1632 Puritan colonist — amassed a thousand acres above the Charles River and built his mansion, Rockweld, on this rocky hilltop. His crowning achievement was a formal rock garden of some 500 species — rhododendrons, azaleas, primrose, and imported alpines — celebrated as the first great rock garden in North America.
The gardens survive to this day, tended by MIT horticulturists from the estate’s own greenhouse.
Five years of craftsmanship
In 1931 the estate passed to H. Wendell Endicott — heir to the Endicott Johnson Shoe Company, board member of Chase National Bank and the Metropolitan Opera. He preserved Weld’s gardens and commissioned prominent New York architect Charles Platt to design a French manor-style mansion in their midst.
Construction took five years. Italian craftsmen painted the Living Room ceiling; European antique fireplaces, gothic choir stalls, and a Flemish tapestry on the main staircase remain in the house today, alongside the Endicotts’ rare paintings, antiques, and oriental rugs.
An educational bequest
Wendell Endicott lived here with his wife Priscilla and their three children until his death in 1954. His will asked that the mansion and its 25 acres — rock garden pond included — be given to an educational, scientific, or religious organization.
MIT accepted, and Endicott House opened as the Institute’s conference center in 1955. The Brooks Center followed in 1983, named for Edward Pennell Brooks, founding dean of the MIT Sloan School of Management and a close Endicott friend. In 1981, the Physics of Computation Conference held here helped launch the field of quantum computing.
A working estate, run sustainably
Endicott House demonstrates at least 85 percent of the IACC’s 60 environmental tenets — across education, waste, recycling, water and energy conservation, and purchasing.
- 100% of electricity from renewable sources; 95% LED fixtures with 80–90% utility savings
- Ecovim dehydrator processes up to 65 lbs of kitchen food waste into compost for the gardens
- Electrolyzed-water cleaning — among the first U.S. conference centers to adopt it
- Aquafresco systems reclaim laundry wastewater; reduced-flow fixtures throughout
- Herbs, lettuce & seasonal vegetables grown on property; honey from the MIT Beekeepers’ Club
- Fryer oil converted to biodiesel; corn-based biodegradable serviceware only
The Institute’s house in the country
Endicott House is owned and operated by MIT — a self-sustaining department of the Institute and its only full-service conference center. MIT community members enjoy dedicated sales support (617-253-9813) for departmental meetings, retreats, and personal celebrations, and MIT groups can arrange campus shuttles through MIT Parking & Transportation.
Students are invariably astonished that MIT boasts such a refined and architecturally stunning facility — and that, as part of our community, they have the privilege of enjoying it.Prof. John G. KassakianLaboratory for Electromagnetic and Electronic Systems, MIT
Frequently asked
Where exactly is the estate?
How far are the airports?
How do I get rates and package information?
Can I tour the estate before booking?
Is transportation available from the MIT campus?
Come walk the gardens.
Seventy years of history are best experienced in person — join us for a complimentary lunch and estate tour.