RIVERMONT COLLEGIATE    1821 Sunset Drive   Bettendorf, IA  52722

www.rvmt.org                                                  (563) 359-1366                              

One of Bettendorf's most distinctive buildings - built to last 1,000 years
 
Joseph W. Bettendorf, head of the Bettendorf Company, built his English manor style home on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River in 1915.  He hired noted architect Arthur H. Ebeling to design and build his dream home for his family and to entertain railroad magnates from the east.  Mr. Bettendorf maintained a close eye on all aspects of design and construction.  Hasselgren Studios of Chicago was hired as the overall decorator.  The foyer and breakfast room ceilings were painted in their studios and shipped by rail to the mansion.  Some rugs were specially ordered by Mr. Bettendorf and took over two years to complete in the Orient.  Construction of the exterior was done by plant employees with all bricks on the mansion measured to be exactly the same size with uniform grout lines.  Italian and German craftsmen were brought to the mansion to carve the woodwork and inlays on-site.
 
The 28-room mansion is 150 feet in length and has three floors and a full basement, for a total of 21,000 square feet of finished space.  In addition to the mansion, the original estate, which covered 24 acres, consisted of a large greenhouse, a carriage house, a bath house and pool, a large guesthouse, and numerous formal gardens.    The building was ahead of its time in many ways:  base electrical outlets, metal lathe when wood was standard, slate roof with copper gutters, steel I-beams throughout the house for extra support, heating and plumbing enclosed in the walls, and a central vacuum system.  The mansion remained a residence of the Bettendorf family until it was sold to Marist Society in 1959 when it was used as a seminary.  In 1973, St. Katharine's-St. Mark's School purchased the mansion and carriage house and moved the school from Davenport.  The school built a gymnasium in 1975 and Becherer Hall in 2001.  In 1981, the school purchased the former guest house to house the Upper School.  In 2002, the school was renamed Rivermont Collegiate since the school was no longer affiliated with any religious organization.  Today only the mansion, carriage house and guest house remain on 8.57 acres of the original estate.  In 1984 the Bettendorf mansion was recognized for its historical significance to the people of Iowa and was entered in the National Register of Historic Places.

Rivermont is fortunate to have such a magnificent building as the centerpiece of our campus and we celebrate the legacy of Joseph Bettendorf by celebrating his birthday (October 10) each year.


Rick St. Laurent
Headmaster