THE VENUE GUIDE
Duke Mansion Weddings
The Duke Mansion is one of our favorite wedding venues in Charlotte, NC. It is the perfect mix of elegance and grace with a gorgeous garden. This is one of the best venues for being able to have everything in one place. The bride and groom have their own rooms with balconies and gorgeous light, and this is one of the best locations to have your ceremony and reception all in one place! If you contact her, make sure you tell Laura we sent you, she is seriously THE BEST!
THE PERFECT VENUE
It’s the day of your wedding and sunlight is streaming through the tress along a fence-lined driveway while wheat blows gently in the fields beyond. Bails of hay pepper the landscape and cows graze in the distance.
This 120 acre farm is filled with a variety of gorgeous settings for your day. The original Farmhouse is the perfect place for Brides to enjoy a few mimosa’s while priming with her closest friends. Meanwhile, Grooms and their guys will feel right at home in the Lodge.
With several unique ceremony locations, you’re sure to find one perfectly tailored for your day. Say I do beneath the trees on the front lawn or in the historic Chapel.
As you walk the grounds, you’ll capture photos that will grace your home for decades to come. You’ll dance the night away inside the original barn light with twinkly lights and elegant chandeliers. Your guests will feel right at home inis how you so beautifully decorated the inside and thought of every last detail.
As you drive back down the lane, leaving the Barn as Husband and Wife, you’ll look over at your handsome husband and thank God you’re married to such an amazing man. And you’ll always remember how beautiful your day truly was.
Brookside Farm Featured Weddings
BROWSE A FEW OF OUR FAVORITE WEDDINGS AT BROOKESIDE FARM TO GET A FEEL FOR HOW THINGS FLOW AT THE VENUE
FAQ
HEre are A FEW QUESTIONS we asked The Duke Mansion about their venue
How did you first establish the vision to make your beautiful setting into an amazing event venue?
The Duke Mansion was built in 1915 by the Taylor family. The house went through many different families, including the Duke’s, the Cannon’s and the Lineberger’s. in 1919, Buck Duke, founder of The American Tobacco Company and Duke Power Company, purchased the home and doubled the size to its current 32,000 square feet. In 1977 the house was turned into condominiums. In 1989 Rick and Dee Ray, founders of Raycom Sports, considered purchasing a condo. Instead the Rays deiced to preserve the mansion and purchase the entire house and lots that has been subdivided. In 1996 The Lee Institute is established with assistance from The Duke Endowment and turns The Mansion into a nonprofit to preserve it. In 1998 The Duke Mansion opened as a historic inn and meeting place.
In 2006 we officially opened for weddings and other events. Since then we have successfully executed thousands of social and corporate events.
What is the inspiration behind your wedding venue? If you had the perfect bride, what would she decorate your venue like?
We are a southern home, so our clients and guests expect a true warm southern welcome in they walk in our doors and we are happy to provide it! Our perfect bride is one that loves her family and loves to have fun! The home itself does not need a lot of decorating in order to dress it up…it’s beautiful all by itself! We love it when brides take the house to the next level with gorgeous flowers and fun linens but appreciates the true beauty that the home has to offer. Our perfect bride knows how to combine the elegance of the home with the modern touches of today’s high end weddings. (Can you say, lighting?!)
When did your venue open?
We officially opened for weddings and social events in 2006. Our Sales and Events Team are the ones responsible for booking and executing all of our events. Katelyn DeFord is our Director of Sales. She sells corporate events and overseas the entire sales and events team. Vanessa Evans is the Social Catering Sales Manager and sells all the weddings and social events. She details a small portion of the events and hangs on to 12 of the weddings. Laura Stump is the Social Conference Services Manager. She details and executes the vast majority of the social and wedding related events and does 13 of the 25 weddings. We have just hired a brand new Conferences Services Manager, who starts in a couple weeks. She will be responsible for detailing and executing the corporate events.
How many guests can your Venue Accommodate?
The Duke Mansion can accommodate weddings up to 150 guests. We also host countless other events throughout the year large and small!
How many weddings do you do a year/a weekend?
The Duke Mansion caps the number of weddings every year to 25. This number allows the historic home time to breath and be maintained in the manor that it should be. It is also a number that we were happy to come to in conjunction with the Myers Park neighborhood.
What was the most unique event that has taken place at your venue?
One of the beautiful things about this place is that we get to interact with all kinds of people and execute some pretty amazing events! We host everything from multi-day corporate meetings to baby showers, bridal showers, and rehearsal dinners, to events for politicians and pro-athletes. When we execute our weddings here, the client has exclusive use of the space for their wedding. That means we only do one wedding that weekend and are solely focused on our bride and groom.
What types of flowers do you like to work with?
Since the home has a lot of neutrals around it, we see a lot of ivory and white or blush toned flowers with greenery. It allows the beauty of the space to shine through! There are always lots of hydrangeas, rununculus, roses and peonies depending on the time of year!
Do you offer rental items?
One of the perks of having your wedding here is that our estate fee covers a lot of what you may have to rent at other venues! It covers our full inventory of tables, chivari chairs, house linen, china, silverware and glassware. we are always happy to help our clients place rental orders for anything they desire. We have wonderful relationships with the local rental companies and make it easy to streamline your rental process.
What is your favorite part of your venue?
I think I have two favorite thing about our venue…I love how unique this place is and how warm and welcoming it is! The house is so beautiful by itself and full of charm. It’s a Charlotte icon and is a unique little gem hidden away in the heart of Myers Park. I also love how a true southern welcome goes a long way. Our guests have not only come to expect a certain level of service but they know it will come with a smile! Everyone from the Front Desk team, Kitchen and Banquet staff to our Sales and Events team is so open, warm and welcoming. We are always so excited to welcome new families into our home!
How big is the staff/how many people will work on an average wedding?
Making this place run on a daily basis is quite the undertaking. For a wedding or our other social or corporate events, it takes even more staff to make our client’s dream come true. If you tally up everyone up that you see and those behind the scenes in the kitchen and setup crew, you’re probably looking at around 40 people to make your big day happen!
How Can People best find you and get In touch?
To get more information on hosting a social event or wedding, please contact us at:
frontdesk@dukemansion.org
Anchor & Veil Photography
GET TO KNOW THE PHOTOGRAPHERS
We are Charlotte Wedding Photographers and our greatest desire is to combine our love and heart to create bold yet intimate images that evoke emotion. With the camera in our hand, we see the world differently than most and we would be honored to capture your wedding day in a bold, intimate and emotional way.
INQUIRE
WE WOULD LOVE TO BE A PART OF YOUR DAY!
Whether you’re getting married at The Duke Mansion or someplace in Charlotte (or beyond!), we would love to be considered for your day.
If you’re interested in working with us, the best way to reach us is by either filling out the form or sending an e-mail to info@anchorandveilphotography.com with your wedding date and location. If you’ve filled out the form and haven’t heard from us in a few days, please email us directly.
