Colorado Governor's Mansion: RiverNorthPhotography/iStock
Are you on the prowl for a beautiful, historic mansion that comes with its own cleaning and maintenance crews, personal chefs who will whip up some delicious baked grits with country ham at 2 a.m., and maybe even a ghost or two—all without paying a cent? Well then, all you (or your spouse) need to do is run for the highest office in your state! And win, of course.
While everyone’s attention may be laser-focused on who will come out on top of the mind-melting spectacle known as the U.S. presidential race, we abide by the famous saying “all politics is local”—and that includes real estate!
You don’t need to be elected leader of the free world to score a four-year stay in weird and wonderful digs paid for by the government. A cool dozen gubernatorial seats are also up for grabs this November—along with a chance to log some quality time in some of the nation’s most storied and spacious homes.
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, the Republican vice presidential nominee, has been living in the state’s English Tudor–style, 10,000-square-foot governor’s mansion since he was elected in 2013. His wife, Karen Pence, even installed a beehive in the garden. A beehive!
The Democratic presidential contender, Hillary Clinton, spent a dozen years in the Colonial Revival–style governor’s mansion in Little Rock, AK, while husband Bill was running the show. They relished the state-maintained herb garden, the house-specialty chicken enchiladas, and the mortgage-free living.
Not every state executive is lucky enough to live in a governor’s mansion. Four states (Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Arizona, and Vermont) don’t even have the official residences. And some top officials—including Ohio Gov. John Kasich, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo—have turned down the free mansions to stay in their private homes instead.
So which states have the biggest executive mansions? The smallest? The strangest? Let’s go to the history books!
The biggestIllinois executive mansion: Springfield, IL
Bedrooms: 7
Bathrooms: 16
Square footage: 45,120
Illinois’ executive mansion is the largest.
You might reasonably expect to find the biggest governor’s mansion in Texas, where everything is bigger, but nope—it’s Illinois, which can also claim the tallest U.S. president as its native son.
President Abraham Lincoln never served as governor, but he did stay over a few times in the Springfield, IL, mansion built in 1855. A bed he slept in, along with many of the other furnishings he used when visiting, is still in place in one of the rooms.
“The bed itself belonged to Abe, who put it in storage in Springfield to be used when he returned from Washington,” says Max Bever, spokesman for the Illinois Executive Mansion Association. “He unfortunately never returned to Springfield alive.” On that cheery note…
Did we mention this place is big? It’s big. And ornate. And often weirdly empty! Many of the recent Prairie State governors haven’t actually lived in this massive mansion, which has common rooms maintained in 19th-century decor and is used mostly for tours and some decidedly stuffy state dinners.
While the current seat holder, Bruce Rauner, has somewhat bucked the trend by sleeping in the second-floor “private apartment” about 250 nights a year, the brick edifice has seen better days. The overgrown gardens obscure the crumbling facade, and the interior features sagging staircases and a broken elevator, according to the Chicago Tribune. Bever’s group is leading a $15 million initiative to bring the mansion up to modern standards. The work is set to be finished in 2018, when the state celebrates its bicentennial.
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The teeniestGovernor’s House (aka Woodburn): Dover, DE
Bedrooms: 3
Bathrooms: 4
Square footage: 3,680
The Governor’s House, aka Woodburn, in Delaware, seen in 1959
You say you want your governor’s mansion a bit more human-size? A tad more manageable? Look no further than Woodburn, as the Delaware governor’s mansion is known. It looks much like an ordinary (and rather sweet) private residence, and that’s exactly what architect Charles Hillyard III built in 1798 (Hillyard snagged the land at a sheriff’s sale for 110 bucks). Decades later, the 3,680-square-foot, Middle Period Georgian–style home with Flemish woodwork served as a stop on the underground railroad, according to Delaware Today.
The mansion was sold to the state in 1965—for just $65,0000 (or nearly $500,000 today). The home has since been modernized, with a 19th-century chandelier restored and crystal and silver sconces wired for electricity. Most important, for residents and visitors, the mansion now has indoor plumbing. Thank God.
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The coolest applianceThe Government House: Annapolis, MD
Bedrooms: 12
Bathrooms: 14
Square footage: 30,800
Maryland Government House
When Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and his wife, Yumi Hogan, moved into the ginormous (second biggest in the U.S.) executive mansion last year, they brought along their dog—and a kimchi refrigerator. Yep, a really big fridge made specifically and exclusively for storing kimchi (a delicious fermented pickle typically made with cabbage, for those of you sadly unfamiliar with Korean food). This, perhaps needless to say, is a first for the historic mansion, which was built in 1870. The cool coolers are common in the first lady’s native South Korea, where kimchi is basically the national dish, but not so much in the homes of American politicians. Yumi reportedly spends time schooling the mansion’s cooks on the intricacies of her home country’s cuisine. She wowed guests last year at a Lunar New Year celebration where she served—you guessed it—homemade kimchi. Mashisseoyo!
First lady Yumi Hogan prepared kimchi for the Lunar New Year celebration at the Maryland Government House in 2015.
Mary F. Calvert For The Washington Post via Getty Images
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Cheesman-Boettcher Mansion: Denver, CO
Bedrooms: 6
Bathrooms: 7
Square footage: 27,000
Colorado governor’s mansion
Magnus Manske/Wikimedia Commons
After a hard day of work, Gov. John Hickenlooper and his staff don’t need to go far to grab a cold one. Before leading the state’s Democratic Party, Hickenlooper was one of the pioneers of the state’s craft beer industry, founding the Wynkoop Brewing Co. in the late 1980s before IPAs were, well, everywhere. So it’s not surprising that he had the Colorado Brewers Guild and the Governor’s Preservation Fund finance and install a three-tap draft beer system in the mansion. There’s a regular rotation of brews from all across the state. Best of all: No tipping is allowed—and no last calls.
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The spookiestNorth Carolina Executive Mansion: Raleigh, NC
Bathrooms: 7
Square footage: 35,000
North Carolina Executive Mansion
Some politicians don’t like change—even long after their deaths. Former North Carolina Gov. Bob Scott (1969–73) told all who would listen about the strange knocking sound on his bedroom wall one night shortly after he’d moved into the Victorian mansion. He and his wife had taken up residence in the bedroom of the mansion’s first inhabitant, former Gov. Daniel G. Fowle, and had moved Fowle’s large custom-made bed into another room, according to The News & Observer. Fowle had died in that bed in 1891 after complaining of indigestion.
The spirit of Fowle apparently wasn’t happy with the new arrangement, and the knocking continued to commence at 10 each night.
The noise “isn’t at the front door,” Scott wrote in 1970. “It’s not the water pipes, either. While I don’t believe in ghosts, someone speculated that it just might be Gov. Fowle on the prowl.”
North Carolina hardly has a lock on executive mansion spooks. In Delaware, partygoers at the 1985 inaugural bash for Gov. Michael Castle reported seeing an otherworldly young girl in a white gingham dress and bonnet holding a candle and walking—or floating—by a reflecting pool. And you thought the Republican debates were scary…
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The quirkiest gardenExecutive Mansion: Charleston, WV
Bedrooms: 11
Bathrooms: 9
Square footage: 21,000
West Virginia governor’s mansion
Enrichyourmind/Wikimedia Commons
West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin is one politician who doesn’t mind getting his hands dirty. He and his wife, Joanne Tomblin, applied their green thumbs to the gubernatorial garden, creating a plot in the shape of West Virginia. If your response is a hearty “who the hell cares,” maybe it’s time to take a look at the shape of West Virginia again. That is one wacky-shaped state! Blame the border disputes and negotiations after the Civil War, but give credit to the Tomblins for trying to replicate it in zucchini, eggplant, Brussels sprouts, and turnips.
If you’re looking for blueberries in this garden, head north toward Wheeling, WV.
West Virginia University Extension Service
And West Virginia isn’t the only place to demonstrate its pride with an oddly shaped feature amenity. The pool in the Alabama governor’s mansion is also configured like the state. This becomes a bit less impressive when you realize that the state is essentially a rectangle that looks pretty much like… a pool.
Alabama-shaped pool: Unlike the state’s neighbor Mississippi, there’s no “P” in “Alabama” (we hope).
Google Maps
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The oldest continuously lived-in governor’s mansionExecutive Mansion: Richmond, VA *
Virginia’s Executive Mansion was opened in 1813. Prior to that, seven state governors resided in the more regal-sounding Governor’s Palace, from 1721 to 1780.
Bill Manning/iStock
History junkies, get your geek on: Virginia’s Executive Mansion, which was opened in 1813, is the oldest governor’s residence in the country that has continually housed the state’s top executives. Gov. Terence McAuliffe is the 55th governor to reside in the home, located in Capitol Square. The brick building underwent a big renovation in 1906 to open..
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