All artists are inspired by experiences. Architects are likely inspired by what they see. I’m assuming James Wise was no different. Our English Tudor-revival residence drew its inspiration from some place or places.
While watching Death of Stalin (2017) recently, we saw a set location (Stalin’s interior residence in the movie) and were struck by certain similarities.
The actual location is known as the Mansion House, Carmel College, Mongewell Park, near the village of Wallingford, Oxfordshire. Carmel College is now a defunct boarding school. The Mansion House was built in 1890 and served as a hospital in WWI. The residence was owned by Howard Gould (son of robber baron Jay Gould) from 1918 to 1939.
Did James Wise see this residence prior to designing Meredith House? The similarities are striking. Our walls are a faux travertine. The coloration on the stone at the Mansion House seems to be a dead ringer. The architect-designed chandelier also contains numerous similarities as does the staircase.
The photos of the Mansion House, Carmel College come from Behind Closed Doors. More history about the Mansion House and Carmel College was culled here.
We’d welcome feedback.
Meredith House 
Hi, I used to live in Meredith house when I was very young. My mother was Caro Story Leachman and my stepfather was Charlie Leachman. Nice to see that the house is getting so much attention. I did visit it maybe 30 years ago. A doctor and his family were living there at that time. They were kind enough to give me a tour.
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