This $27M Hamptons home just listed for the first time in 55 years — featuring a glamorous, and protected, view
A sprawling estate in East Hampton, steeped in history and cherished by one family for more than half a century, has listed for $27 million — marking only its second time on the market since its construction in 1958, The Post has learned.
The 1.69-acre property at 21 Hook Pond Lane, formerly owned by a World War II veteran — the late Seldon Taylor James Jr. — and his wife, Linda James, offers sweeping vistas across Hook Pond, the tony Maidstone Club and the Atlantic Ocean, a rare combination that commands its lofty price tag.
The 4,000-square-foot home, designed by renowned local architect Alfred Scheffer, features six bedrooms, five bathrooms and a first-floor primary suite with an adjacent library.
At its core lies an eye-catching double-height great room, distinguished by 200-year-old timber beams, wide-plank floors and expansive bookshelves framing views of the serene pond.
“Alfred Scheffer liked to select these historic references and incorporate them into his designs,” said Liz Carey, who co-listing the property with Valerie H. Smith of Sotheby’s International Realty. “It’s got triple hung windows and a massive fireplace, and it is really the heart of the house.”
The property’s allure is deeply tied to its setting.
Tucked at the end of a private lane in the heart of East Hampton village, it sits just minutes from Main Beach and the area’s upscale shops and restaurants. Its dock and proximity to the water foster an intimate connection to the environment.
“What’s really cool about this house is it’s set close to the water and there’s an incredible abundance of wildlife here,” Carey said. “You can’t spend five minutes in the house without turning into an environmentalist because the bunny comes hopping out of the bush and the turkeys go strutting across and the bald eagle lands in the tree.”
The estate’s price hinges on its unparalleled scenery.
“The view, the view, the view,” said Smith, explaining the valuation. “It’s a heart-stopping forever and ever view that will never be developed in any way because it sees a golf course that will always remain a golf course and the pond where nothing can happen.”
She added that the vista, often dotted with swans, is “one of the longest open views in East Hampton and forever protected.”
The home’s history is as rich as its surroundings.
Originally built by Bishop Austin Pardue, who led the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh for nearly three decades, and his wife, Dorothy, the residence was crafted with Scheffer’s signature attention to historical detail and site-specific design.
The bishop’s family resided in the house until 1970, when it was purchased by Seldon, a Navy veteran, wool trader, former Allen and Company employee — and later an independent investment banker in New York and Director of CPAC Inc. in upstate Rochester.
When he bought the Hook Pond property, he encountered an unexpected connection.
“One of our favorite stories was when this current family bought the house 55 years ago, the father of the family went next door to introduce himself to the neighbors,” Carey said. “And the neighbor opened the front door and they exclaimed each other’s names. They realized they had grown up together as expats in Argentina, as children, and now here they were 40 or 50 years later, living next door to each other. The odds were incredible.”
Seldon passed away in 2012 at the age of 81 and the home has remained in the family.
“They just have a supernatural devotion to the house and property and have just been, I think the short answer is so happy here,” Smith said. But with their three children now settled in California, Canada and the Hudson Valley, maintaining the home has become impractical.
“There was absolutely no reason to move on,” Smith noted. “But as life changes and their three children are all living very much elsewhere, it’s just not realistic for them to spend the kind of time here that they would love to.”
The decision to sell is tinged with emotion.
“They’re leaving the Hamptons altogether,” Carey said. “And it’s bittersweet because it’s a really special, unique spot that they’ve poured their hearts into for so long.”
