The Lexington Mansion on the Danada Kentucky farm was a relatively understated but classic Kentucky home that served the Rices during their visits. As noted, it was a two-story colonial-style house with a brick facade, distinguished by a symmetric arrangement of windows and a central doorway with traditional trim. With five windows across the second floor and likely columns or pilasters by the door, it embodied the genteel architecture favored on Bluegrass horse farms.
Little is recorded about the mansion’s interior or exact construction date. It’s possible the house pre-dated the Rices’ ownership (maybe built by a prior Idle Hour Farm manager or as a guest house for Idle Hour). Alternatively, the Rices may have built it in the late 1940s after purchasing the farm – but given the phrasing “little is known about the house; however it still stands… after having received a few additions by subsequent owners”, one infers the Rices didn’t publicize it much, and later owners expanded it.
What we do know:
- The mansion was likely modest in size compared to their Wheaton Danada House (19 rooms). A five-bay colonial of that era might have had, say, 4 bedrooms and perhaps 8-10 main rooms.
- It probably served more as a farm manager’s residence or a guest house. Ada and Dan often stayed at hotels or with friends when in Kentucky for the races (Ada loved the Phoenix Hotel in Lexington and Brown Hotel in Louisville during Derby week, according to anecdotal sources, and they maintained a suite at Palmer House in Chicago). They might not have spent extended periods in Kentucky except during breeding season or sales.
- The house was situated to have a pleasant view of the pastures. It may have had a long tree-lined drive – many Idle Hour properties had impressive drives.
After the Rices’ era, when the property changed hands, the new owners added onto the house. Possibly wings or porticos were added, but it remains recognizable. Current street views (as of the 2010s) show a lovely historic home tucked among large trees on that farm, consistent with an older structure preserved.
The mansion and farm are private today, so not open to the public. But historically, that Lexington Mansion symbolizes the Rices’ extension of Danada hospitality to Kentucky. One can imagine small gatherings there with their Lexington friends – maybe a cocktail party during the Keeneland sales or a celebratory toast after a Danada-bred horse won at Keeneland.
In sum, while the Lexington Mansion did not attain the fame of Danada House in Wheaton, it was an integral part of the Rices’ thoroughbred enterprise – a comfortable home base in the Bluegrass where Ada and Dan’s two worlds (Chicago finance and Kentucky horses) intersected. Its enduring existence (unlike the Florida home which was razed) means a piece of the Rices’ life in Kentucky still survives tangibly.
