The Work and Mission of the Millay Society
From 1925 to 1950, Edna St. Vincent Millay lived and worked on a farm in the hamlet of Austerlitz in Columbia County, New York, a farm which she named Steepletop. The name was drawn from a wild flower which grew all over the property: Steeplebush, or Hardhack, technically Spirea Tomentosa. Steepletop then encompassed 700 acres including a wonderful garden designed, planted and maintained by Millay herself.
At the core of this garden stands Millay’s house. Built in 1892, the same year in which Millay was born, its original Victorian glories were removed by Millay to create a simple New England farmhouse. Today the house still holds all of her furniture, her books and other possessions, many of which remain where they were on the day she died, October 19, 1950.
The principal goal of The Millay Society and the Friends of Millay supporter program is to foster and appreciate Millay’s literary legacy and to restore and preserve this unique site, which has been designated a National Historic Landmark since 1972.Visitors to Steepletop can view a work in progress: they can experience the re-claimed gardens, walk the Poetry Trail and enjoy the expansive vista from the Tennis Court, visit the Exhibition Gallery, and tour rooms in Millay’s house.