About the House

When C.S. purchased the land for Applewood in 1915, he wanted enough room to have a farm that would provide healthy food and space for livestock. He was delighted to find apple trees already growing on the estate. C.S. relocated the trees to create a small orchard directly in front of his new home.

Today, the apple orchard includes about 70 trees with 29 varieties of heritage apples. One tree, a Stayman Winesap, is original to C.S.’s time at Applewood and is estimated to be over 100 years old. The entire property today comprises 32 acres—18 acres within the fence line. 

Herbert Davis worked with landscape architect William Pitkin, Jr. to design a beautiful and practical estate. Applewood’s recreational offerings included tennis and squash courts, a space for riding horses, a lawn bowling court, flower and vegetable gardens, and an exhibition greenhouse.

Applewood was designed to include a “gentleman’s farm,” or a small hobby farm operated for personal use, not profit. The estate’s farming operation included dairy cows, horses, pigs, and poultry. C.S. Mott was pleased that the farm animals could provide most of the meat, eggs, and dairy products for the family. The farm’s two draft horses were used for plowing the fields and other heavy work. The Gatehouse, just a short walk from both the house and the main barn, was home to Applewood’s farmer and his family. Here’s an excerpt from Applewood: The Charles Stewart Mott Estate, 100 Years of Stories: “Through the end of World War I, the Spanish influenza epidemic, the Great Depression, and World War II, the diligent farmer oversaw every aspect of farming from plowing, planting, and harvesting crops to selecting new livestock, milking the prized dairy cows, mending fences, and filling the Motts’ freezer with meat.”

The house includes large rooms for entertaining and family events. The Motts enjoyed spending time as a family in the large Living Room or the bright Sun Room. The Dining Room features a table which could seat up to 24 people. The basement has a billiard table, game room, and a built-in two lane bowling alley.

The Motts routinely hosted parties and functions at their home, including an annual open house where the Flint community was invited to Applewood.

Applewood also included accommodations for staff. The third floor of the home includes four rooms and a full bathroom. The Maid’s Sitting Rooms on each floor were used as breakrooms for staff.

The Gardener’s Cottage provided housing for the farmer and his family and the garage had an apartment used as chauffeur’s quarters.

Throughout its history, Applewood has been a place to convene meetings of the many philanthropic and community endeavors with which the Motts were involved. The Ruth Mott Fund, a precursor to the Ruth Mott Foundation, held meetings in the Sun Room.

Upon her death in 1999, Ruth Mott left Applewood to the Ruth Mott Foundation as a historic estate to be enjoyed and used as a community resource. In 2016, the Ruth Mott Foundation celebrated Applewood’s centennial by opening up the estate more than ever before, establishing weekly visitor hours, new programs, and new tours of the house.

The entire house, and its contents, are cared for by trained preservation specialists. The basement and rooms on the first and second floors are staged to show how the house looked during the time of C.S. and Ruth Mott. The third floor contains the historic archives.