The History of Great Island With Architect George Knight

Darien Library, Museum of Darien, and the Great Island Advisory Committee welcome award-winning architect George Knight, who will speak about the history of Darien's Great Island.

Located off the coast of Long Island Sound, Great Island is connected to Darien by Rings End Bridge. The property was originally built as a summer estate by William Ziegler, a billionaire industrialist and baking powder magnate who died in 1905. 

The magnificent designs of many of the buildings on Great Island can be traced back to prominent and well-known architectural firms of the era. The architecture and the scenic roads throughout the island exist as lasting examples to the estate's rich history.

Join us to learn about these majestic and fascinating buildings, how they were conceptualized and built, including the Estate House, the Stables, The Carriage House, the Greenhouse, and more.

About George Knight

George Knight formed Knight Architecture LLC in 2004 and serves as principal. He had previously spent ten years with Cesar Pelli & Associates in New Haven, Connecticut, serving as Senior Associate, and before that had worked with Shope Reno Wharton Associates in Greenwich, Connecticut. 

He graduated cum laude from Princeton University in 1989, winning the Willard Thorpe Thesis Prize. In 1995, he graduated from the Yale School of Architecture, where he won the drawing prize and where he has taught since 2004. He sits on the Board of Directors of the International Festival of Arts and Ideas, the Board of Governors of the Ivy Club in Princeton, New Jersey, and the City of New Haven’s Historic District Commission. He lives in New Haven with his wife and five children. 

About the Museum of Darien

The Museum of Darien's mission is to maintain, collect, preserve, and exhibit materials of local historic value and to educate the community about its heritage. It is through the diligent performance of this Mission that the Museum will bring a greater sense of community to the residents of Darien, by helping them to understand and to honor and preserve its heritage as they shape its future.