Hempstead House, the Guggenheim mansion at Sands Point Preserve, has stood in for a castle, a college campus, a hotel and a Turkish spa on screen. On November 13 and 14, the Sands Point Preserve Conservancy is running a tour built around that second career: guests watch clips from The Gilded Age, Boardwalk Empire, The Americans and other productions filmed in the house, then walk through the rooms where those scenes were shot.

The tour, called Lights, Camera, Hempstead House, is one of several programs on the preserve's November calendar, which also includes a night walk in search of owls, a chamber music afternoon in the mansion, and a talk tying the house to Charles Lindbergh ahead of the 100th anniversary of his flight to Paris.

The film tour

Hempstead House was built as the Gold Coast home of Daniel and Florence Guggenheim and has since become a working location for film and television crews. The conservancy's tour looks at how one house can be dressed to play so many different places, pairing each clip with the room it came from.

Sessions are Friday, November 13 at 11 a.m. and Saturday, November 14 at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., each running about an hour and fifteen minutes. Tickets are $25 per person. The tour is limited to guests 17 and older because some of the clips contain adult content.

Owl Prowl, two nights

Both Owl Prowl sessions open indoors with a presentation from the Center for Environmental Education and Discovery on identifying owls by sight and sound and on drawing them to a backyard. The group then heads into the preserve's woods for a quiet guided walk after dark, looking for owls and other nighttime wildlife. Flashlights are not needed; the presenter teaches participants how to let their night vision adjust.

  • Adults only: Thursday, November 5, 7:30 to 9 p.m. $20 for members, $25 for nonmembers.
  • Families, children 8 and up: Friday, November 6, 7 to 8:30 p.m. Adults $20 for members and $25 for nonmembers; children $7 for members and $12 for nonmembers.

Prices include parking. Space is limited and registration is required.

Chamber music in the mansion

The Four Seasons in Music series, now in its eighth season under artistic director Kathryn Lockwood, plays its fall concert, Song for Autumn, on Sunday, November 8 at 3 p.m. in Hempstead House. The preserve's ensemble in residence, duoJalal (Lockwood on viola and Yousif Sheronick on percussion), is joined by violinists MinYoung Kim and Ben Russell, cellist Eliana Razzino Yang and clarinetist Mark Dover. The program is built around music shaped by migration and by crossing borders, and a wine reception with the musicians follows. Tickets are $50 for members and $61 for nonmembers, parking included.

Lindbergh, Guggenheim and Long Island

May 20, 2027 will mark 100 years since Charles Lindbergh took off from Roosevelt Field and landed at Le Bourget Airport outside Paris. On Wednesday, November 18, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., conservancy board member Frank Ullman will talk about the flight and about Lindbergh's ties to Harry Guggenheim, the longest resident of the estate that is now the preserve. The talk is free; nonmembers pay a $15 parking fee. Registration is required at 516-570-2185.

Veterans Day

The preserve's Navy Simulation Museum, normally open on Saturdays and Sundays, is free on Veterans Day, Wednesday, November 11.

Getting there

Sands Point Preserve is at 127 Middle Neck Road in Sands Point, just north of Port Washington. The trails, garden and playground are open Wednesday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tickets for the ticketed programs are sold through the conservancy's event pages, and general questions go to 516-571-7901.

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