Museum Mile

Route 22 just outside Katonah [1] is known as Museum Mile because of the three major cultural institutions found there.

Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts

Most famous among them is the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts (149 Girdle Ridge Rd., off Rte. 22, 914/232-5035, www.caramoor.org [2]). An overgrown and romantic estate built in the 1930s by financier Walter Tower Rosen, Caramoor presents a highly acclaimed outdoor music festival (box office 914/232-1252, tickets $10–85) every summer, featuring many top names in classical music and opera and a few top names in jazz.

Caramoor Rosen House

Originally built by Rosen to house his outstanding art collection, the Caramoor Rosen House (149 Girdle Ridge Rd., off Rte. 22, 914/232-5035, www.caramoor.org [2], 1:15–4 p.m., last tour at 3 p.m., Wed.–Sun. May–Oct., adults $10, children under 16 free) is well worth visiting. The fascinating main house was created by combining entire rooms from historic European buildings and surrounding them with a Mediterranean-style shell. One of the bedrooms comes from a 1678 French chateau; the exquisite music room was originally part of a 16th-century Italian villa. Meanwhile, all around the house are sun-baked courtyards and deserted gardens strewn with weathering statuary.

John Jay Homestead

Down the street from Caramoor is John Jay Homestead (400 Rte. 22, 914/232-5651, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Wed.–Sat. and 11 a.m.–4 p.m. Sun. Apr.–Oct., 10 a.m.–3 p.m. Wed.–Sat. and 11 a.m.–3 p.m. Sun. Nov.–Mar., free admission). Jay was president of the Continental Congress, first chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, and co-author of both the Federalist Papers and the Treaty of Paris (which ended the American Revolution). He retired here after leaving public office in 1801. The large wooden house with purple shutters and an inviting veranda is filled with period antiques and memorabilia. Surrounding the house are landscaped gardens and a 900-acre farm.

Katonah Museum of Art

Just north of John Jay’s former home is the small but exceedingly lovely Katonah Museum of Art (Rte. 22 at Jay St., 914/232-9555, www.katonahmuseum.org [3], 1–5 p.m. Tues.–Fri. and Sun., 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Sat., with extended hours in summer, free admission). Designed by Edward Larrabee Barnes, the museum features unusual temporary exhibits by major contemporary artists such as Milton Avery and Mark Rothko.