It may be a stressful job, but American state governors get to live rent-free in some magnificent mansions. Almost all 50 American states have an official residence for their state governor, and some even rival the White House's architectural grace and beauty.
From palace-like structures to homes set in stunning grounds with views to match, we ranked 11 of America’s finest.
Click or scroll on to find out which ones made the grade...
Home to New York governors and their families since 1875, the New York State Executive Mansion stands out for its Queen Anne-style architecture, including its tower and elegant wraparound porch, which provides stunning views of the Albany skyline.
Originally built for businessman Thomas Olcott in 1856, the 17,600-square-foot (5,364 sqm) home was acquired by New York State in 1877.
The library is filled with rare books, and its 'Princess Suite' has hosted Senators Robert Kennedy, Albert Einstein and President Harry Truman.
Its most significant former resident was possibly Franklin D. Roosevelt, seen here in one of the home’s elegant reception rooms in 1933. The President-elect and Mrs Roosevelt had tea with the new governor, Herbert H. Lehman and his wife Edith.
However, it wasn't a cosy home-from-home for all governors; previous governor Andrew Cuomo admitted to being spooked by stories that the house was haunted.
Also known as the People’s House of Florida, this historic residence in Tallahassee was designed by renowned Palm Beach architect Marion Sims Wyeth in 1956.
An earlier mansion was built on the site in 1907, housing a succession of eleven governors until it was deemed unsound in 1955 and replaced by the current Greek Revival structure.
The central portico resembles another building in Tennessee, known as the Hermitage, home to Andrew Jackson, Florida’s first military governor.
Designed to accommodate both private living and official entertaining, the mansion has 30 rooms spanning 15,000 feet (1,393 sqm) and is set in 1.5 acres (0.6ha) of beautiful grounds.
The interior of the house, furnished by James Cogar, a leading expert in colonial décor, is a treasure trove of antique furnishings. It is glimpsed here on election night in 2000, when the Bush family gathered at the home of Jeb Bush, who served as the 43rd Governor of Florida.
Nestled in tropical gardens in the shade of swaying palm trees, Washington Place in Honolulu isn’t a bad place to live and work.
The elegant Greek Revival house was also the former home of Queen Lili’uokalani, the last sovereign of Hawaii, who was forced to surrender her throne in 1895.
The property was built by American trader Captain John Dominis in 1847 as his personal residence, and has served as the official residence for the Governor of Hawaii since 1922.
Queen Lili’uokalani took up residence in 1862 as the young bride of John Owen Dominis, son of the captain, who originally built the home. It would remain her home for 55 years until she died in this bedroom in 1917.
The current Governor’s residence was built in 2008 and is located behind the historic home within the grounds of Washington Place, which was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2007.
Originally the private home of the Ligon family, this opulent Governor’s Mansion has served as the official residence of the Governor and the first family of Alabama since 1951.
Designed in 1907 by T. Weatherly Carter, the Neoclassical structure features a large two-storey portico fronted by four Corinthian columns. It is set in beautifully landscaped grounds, which includes a swimming pool in the shape of Alabama!
One of its most impressive features is its grand staircase leading up from the entrance hall to the second level.
Rooms open to visitors include the reception hall, dining room, First Lady’s Parlor and drawing room. The first floor spans 4,500 square feet (418 sqm) and features hand-carved mouldings, mantels and some inlaid floors.
The governor’s living quarters are located on the second floor and include five bedrooms and four bathrooms across 4,000 square feet (372 sqm).
Situated on the grounds of the State Capitol campus, the Governor’s Mansion in Olympia is a Georgian-style building with 19 rooms.
Sitting on 12 acres (4.8ha) of land, it is (perhaps surprisingly) the third largest of the estates attached to a governor’s mansion in America.
It was donated to the state in 1855 by Edmund Sylvester, one of the founding fathers of Olympia, the state’s capital city.
The first floor features a ballroom with a musicians’ gallery, a state dining room, a living room and the governor’s study, while the second floor has eight rooms and three bathrooms.
The mansion underwent a large-scale renovation led by the Evans administration in the 1970s using furnishings and decorations that reflected the early years of Washington state.
Designed by architects Samuel Sloan and A.G. Bauer and completed in 1891, North Carolina’s Executive Mansion in Raleigh is said to have been described by President Roosevelt as "the most beautiful governor’s residence interior in America".
The brick and sandstone building, with its steeply pitched roof and gingerbread ornamentation, is a superb example of the Queen Anne style of Victorian architecture.
Some of these buildings have a complicated history, particularly in the South. This mansion was largely constructed by prisoners, many of them newly freed Black Americans.
At 35,000 square feet (3,252 sqm), it’s the third largest governors' mansion in America and boasts a series of formal and more relaxed rooms that may have impressed Franklin D. Roosevelt, amongst them the Ballroom, originally the Music Room, which provided shelter for soldiers during World War One.
The Gentlemen’s Parlour features Chinese Chippendale décor, while the Ladies’ Parlour was used as a bedroom for FDR during his visit in 1929, as it was most suitable for his wheelchair.
The oldest continually occupied governors' mansion west of the Mississippi River, this historic home has served as the official residence of Texas governors since 1856.
Constructed by master builder Abner Cook, it features a deep veranda, floor-length windows and wide hallways to provide cooling ventilation in summer. Cook’s 'X-and-Stick' balustrades on the porch were his trademark and adorned many houses he built for Austin’s elite.
The simple two-storey building features four main rooms on each floor, two on either side of a broad central hall.
The mansion underwent huge renovation works in 2008 due to arson. The fire caused extensive damage, and it took four years to restore the building to its former glory.
Luckily, much of the furniture had been removed due to maintenance works, and in 2012, the collections returned to their places in the historic rooms, as seen here in the Large Parlour.
The Illinois Governor’s Mansion is the largest in America at 45,000 square feet (13,716 sqm).
Chicago architect John Mills Van Osdel, who designed the home of Chicago’s first mayor and the city’s courthouse building, constructed the mansion in 1855 in the then-popular Italianate style while incorporating Greek Revival features typical of 19th-century public architecture.
How’s this for an intimate dinner? The State Dining Room doubled in size during a major renovation project in the 1970s and now seats up to 20 guests beneath stunning Waterford crystal chandeliers.
More recently, First Lady MK Pritzker engaged designer Michael Smith, who worked with the Obamas at the White House, to redesign the interiors in 2019.
Other notable features include the mansion’s original elliptical staircase and a rare beardless portrait of Abraham Lincoln.
The oldest continuously occupied governor’s residence in America, Richmond’s Executive Mansion has been home to Virginia’s governors since 1813.
Designed by architect Alexander Parris in the Federal style, the mansion sits close to the site of a modest frame structure that served as the home to Virginia’s governors after the capital moved from Williamsburg to Richmond in 1780.
Virginia’s 18th governor James Barbour moved into the newly built residence in 1813, and it has been occupied by the state’s governors ever since.
The mansion’s original grounds included a separate cook house, smokehouse, stable, ice house and carriage and cannon houses.
Only the cook house and carriage house remain, but the main house is open to visitors, who can tour a range of historical rooms.
That includes the Ladies’ Parlour, the Ballroom, the Old Governor’s Office and the formal Dining Room.
Constructed on land that witnessed the 1777 Princeton battle for American independence, Drumthwacket, meaning 'wooded hill' in Scots Gaelic, is one of the most elegant of all the country’s executive residences.
Built in 1835 in the Greek Revival style by businessman Charles Smith Olden, this amazing 16,000 square-foot (1,486 sqm) mansion sits on 12 acres (4.8ha) of stunning grounds, including the Italianate Gardens located directly behind the home.
The east and west wings were added by its second owner, Gilded Age industrialist and banker, Moses Taylor Pyne. The house played host to groundbreaking scientist Abram Nathanial Spanel in the 1940s, before becoming the official residence of the New Jersey Governor in 1981.
Former First Lady Deborah Kean is noted for renovating the mansion, forming a foundation to raise funds, and filling it with antiques which are still admired today.
Often compared to the White House, the Kentucky Governor’s mansion has been described as the most beautiful building in America. The stunning Beaux-Arts-style residence was built in 1912 and was modelled after Marie Antoinette’s Petit Trianon at Versailles.
The three-acre property offers breathtaking views of the Kentucky River, making it one of the most scenic governor’s homes in America and well worthy of the top spot.
The stately pile spans 80 feet (24m) wide and 200 feet (61m) long, with a living and working space of 18,428 square feet (1,712 sqm).
Seen here in 2007, the home was given an extensive renovation. Director at the time, Ken Bishop (pictured), oversaw the installation of new windows, doors, heating and cooling systems. Plus, hardwood floors were restored and fresh upholstery brought in. The rear terrace was also completely remodelled.
Added to the US National Register of Historic Places in 1972, its opulent interiors have welcomed the late Queen Elizabeth II, Muhammad Ali and Martin Luther King Jr.
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