John LeBoutillier, Gertrude Whitney’s great grandson, will present a lecture on “The Gilded Age: A Tour of Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney’s Long Island Studio,” on Nov. 20 at Trinity Episcopal Church (1579 Northern Blvd., Roslyn).
Hosted by the Roslyn Landmark Society and Trinity Church, the free event will be held at 3 p.m.
In this lively lecture, LeBoutillier will take attendees back to the Gilded Age to share stories about his great-grandmother and for an inside look at her studio in Old Westbury, Long Island.
Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney was an American sculptor, art patron and collector, and founder in 1931 of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City. She was a prominent social figure and hostess, who was born into the wealthy Vanderbilt family and married into the Whitney family.
A lifelong resident of Old Westbury, John LeBoutillier was born in Glen Cove on May 26, 1953. A 1976 magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College with a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard Business School, LeBoutillier used his college experience as the basis of his book, Harvard Hates America.
Lecturer and author, LeBoutillier has since written numerous articles which have appeared on the New York Times Op-Ed Page, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times Sunday Magazine and in major publications throughout the nation.
Elected on Nov. 4, 1980 to represent New York’s 6th District, LeBoutillier was the youngest member of the 97th Congress.
During that time, he served on the House Foreign Affairs Committee and, as a member of the Special House POW/MIA Task Force pressed for continuing investigation to determine the fate of 2,500 Americans still unaccounted for in Indochina.
The lecture will be held at Trinity Episcopal Church, a landmark church in Roslyn built in 1906 by one of America’s most famous architects, Stanford White, who had a profound impact on the look of America in the “Gilded Age.” Trinity Church invites all to come see its Gilded Age church and enjoy the lively lecture.
The Roslyn Landmark Society is at the forefront of the preservation movement on Long Island. Its mission is to preserve and promote the rich history and historical resources in the 350-year-old Village of Roslyn and the surrounding community.
For more information on the Roslyn Landmark Society and to sign up for “Long Island’s Gilded Age” lecture visit roslynlandmarks.org.
