In 1920, Edith Rosenwald of Chicago had met Edgar Stern of New Orleans in New York and fell in love. Edith was the daughter of Julius Rosenwald and an heiress to the Sears-Roebuck fortune.

The Edison and Ford properties are both on the National Register of Historic Sites and consist of 20 acres of historical buildings and gardens including the 1928 Edison Botanical Research Laboratory.

Graycliff was designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright between 1926-1931 for Isabelle R Martin, wife of industrialist Darwin Martin, as a summer home for their family.

The Sarah P Duke Gardens consist of approximately 55 beautifully landscaped and wooded acres including terraced gardens, fountains, gazebos, bridges at Duke University.