The phrase "keeping up with the Joneses" is familiar to most of us, and implies the sad but ubiquitous habit of comparing ourselves to those around us. We end up buying and showing off things we cannot afford just to keep up with those who can afford it, and show that we, too, are worthy of status. This applies to houses more than anything else. But who were these enviable Joneses, and what were they showing off?
That would be Elizabeth Jones, a staunch advocate of conspicuous consumption, and her lovely summer home in New York. The house, called Wyndcliffe, sat on 80 acres and was so grand that the area around it near the town of Rhinebeck on the Hudson River became hot property as others tried to, ahem, "keep up with the Joneses." That's where the familiar phrase came from. You might be interested in seeing this grand house and learning what became of it. YouTube channel This House is happy to tell you all about it.