Knollwood
This mansion was built for steel tycoon Charles Hudson in 1906 and completed in 1920, complete with 60 rooms on 260 acres. Also referred to as the King Zog estate, this site is now a part of the Muttontown Preserve. What was once a huge stone mansion with classical columns and balustrades, now resembles the remnants of a Roman ruin. It is an eerie, haunting site. Huge trees stand in a perfect line amid the overgrowth covering all but the garden stairs. Shattered balustrades, stone terrace walls, and massive stone stairs sit silently and forgotten.
Who was King Zog and how did this mansion meet this fate? Ahmet Muhtar Bej Zogolli, a.k.a King Zog was the ruler of Albania from 1922 to 1939. After being exiled by Mussolini, Zog made plans to relocate to the United States, and purchased Knollwood for their new home in 1951 for $102,800. Though Zog originally planned to use the estate as a colony of Albania, complete with Albanian subjects, he never moved in. Knollwood fell into disrepair and vandals soon descended on the property, searching for the legendary treasure hidden in the walls. It was sold in 1955 and torn to the ground in 1959.
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