The Belvedere Cherry Grove Est. 1957

Oct 4

As you arrive by ferry to Cherry Grove to your left sits a castle like building that stands out with its white facade. Is it a palace of some long ago prince? I guess you could say it is. John Eberhardt and partner Joe created a fantasy here. His own. That he has left for all to experience. He also left his history, that is now ours to share…

John Eberhardt 1921 – 2014

1949. Belvedere owner John Eberhardt had first arrived to Cherry Grove with a friend, and stayed in a pup tent on the beach. After two years or so, he started to build. Eberhardt with one helper would put up frame houses in a matter of a week or so. It is estimated that he is responsible for the construction of over 50 homes through the years. These homes, unlike the hotel which he began construction on at the same time, were advertised. Ads would tempt potential renters or buyers, telling them about their dream summer homes complete with wood deck, and fireplace. All for $3200.00 excluding the lot. With the lot they were a whopping $5000.00. Before John lived in the frame house he built on Maryland Walk, and wintered in Palm Beach, he was living in New Jersey. Born in Maplewood in 1921, he later built and resided in a home in Edgewater with a view of the Hudson and Manhattan. He vacationed in Key West at the time where he had purchased a house as well. By trade he was an artist, even though he had no formal training. Eberhardt owned a company responsible for designing and manufacturing items for opulent window displays at many of the large New York City department stores. Especially for Christmas. He made things like “Santaland, little elf houses, and ducks by the hundred. Mostly out of paper mache.” While he was building his Edgewater home out of salvaged material from a defunct mansion in Short Hills New Jersey he was working as a scenic artist for a small opera company and for ABC and CBS . According to Eberhardt , “on company time, I would do a lot of my homes construction, and if I was needed on the set , I had a small fast MG sports car, so I could get to Fort Lee fast where the scenic painting company was located.” His designing jobs kept him in the money, and allowed him the freedom to build his dream home.

1960’s.

The Belvedere is in fact such a tribute to Venetian architecture that the mayor of Venice sent their city’s flag as a gift. It still flies above the hotel’s ornate towers along with the american flag and a pride flag. It also has it’s own chapel in the quiet, gated entry way just like any Italian villa.

John and Craig 70's.jpg — Craig Eberhardt:

“I first met John at a bar in New York and went home with him,” Craig says. “He invited me out to stay with him on the island, and when I got there, lo and behold, it was The Belvedere.” After staying there the first time, Craig didn’t leave for 13 years.
A master carpenter, Craig helped John usher in the establishment’s second life. Together they added a pool and Jacuzzi area and started to add on to the house, annexing the buildings next door (which John also owned) to make additional wings to the right of the main house. Craig also built all the balconies, decks and private baths that guests enjoy today.

While Craig was building, John was decorating. He painted all the gorgeous trompe l’oeil murals that are still in the house today and rounded up all the antiques—many of them from Europe—that give the house its infamous interior design. Each of the rooms was decorated in a particular theme, and while some of the hardware, fabric and linens have been updated, they’re still in the style that John intended.

Belvedere Founder John Eberhardt (left) Passed Away at Age 92 in 2014. Craig and husband Julian Dorcelien Eberhardt (right) continued the legacy until John’s death in 2018. Today the Belverdere legacy continues as Julian takes into the future…