'Stoneleigh' from the north-east shown in The Saratogian 1907 supplement "Saratoga Summer Cottages."
CHRISTMAS BREAK
CALAMITY WRITTEN BY BILL ORZELL | PHOTOS PROVIDED
The resort of Saratoga Springs enjoyed a building boom in the 1880s, as the refinement of railway and Hudson River steamboat transportation allowed many non-residents to erect summer cottages at the Spa. One fine example was Stoneleigh, at 2 Union Avenue, across the street from the recently completed Kensington Hotel. Harry S. Leech of New York, track maven and sportsman who competed in high-stakes billiard contests, hired local builder William S. Robertson to construct the impressive manse, with a porte cochère, lots of porches, balconies, turrets and towers galore. Mr. Robertson, along with his father Andrew, had 86 | SIMPLY SARATOGA | HOLIDAY 2021
built some of Saratoga’s most notable structures including the Saratoga Hospital, State Armory, Inniscara, the Canfield Casino, the race track’s grandstand and clubhouse, and many homes on North Broadway. By 1887 Harry Leech was improving Stoneleigh, adding a third cupola tower to the Circular Street side of the dwelling, which many thought enhanced its symmetry. The villa was centered on a two-acre greensward, with extraordinary flower beds which contained exotic tropical plants. The property was surrounded by a massive capped masonry wall.
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