It may seem impossible, but it’s true: a glass house once stood in Nyack, built by a sun-worshipping naturist. In 1927, Evelyn Word Provost Leigh constructed this extraordinary home atop one of Nyack’s highest points at 19 Central Avenue, with breathtaking views of the Hudson River. Nestled between 5th and 6th Avenues, above Tillou Lane, the house became famous for its unusual occupant. Known as “Lady Leigh” by local newspapers, she was a true personality—twice married, a model, movie star, dancer, sun worshiper, moon worshiper, and horse lover. Whether she liked it or not, she was also a constant headline-grabber.
Her unconventional lifestyle stirred curiosity and surprise. Despite the six-foot wire fence she put up around the property, boys would try to peek inside. Even more astonishing, a musician—according to his grandson—once played in a band during a nude party at the Glass House. The band wore clothes, but Lady Leigh and her guests were unapologetically naked.
“I worship the sun. It is my God”
Lady Leigh
Lady Leigh had moved to Nyack hoping for privacy after enduring the prying eyes while sunbathing on the rooftops of New York City. However, she quickly learned that living in a glass house, especially as a naturist woman living alone, only fueled more curiosity. It wasn’t the escape she had hoped for, but for anyone living in a transparent home, who could be surprised?
Evelyn Provost
Evelyn Provost was born in Brooklyn on August 2, 1892, with a connection to Rockland County as a member of the Van Orden family of Spring Valley. She claimed to be a cousin of William K. Dick, an industrialist, and the husband of Mrs. Madeline Force Astor. Provost starred in some 18 silent movies in 1913 and 1914 using the stage name Adele Ray. She may have acted in the Ziegfield follies.
Even as a young woman, Evelyn displayed eccentricity. In 1913, she tried to start a fashion trend in New York City by promoting long, split skirts for winter, paired with fur anklets for protection against the cold. Unfortunately, the fashion never caught on. After spending winters in Florida, she became a sun worshiper, professing a devotion to Ra, the Egyptian sun god. Evelyn believed that ultraviolet rays were the key to health. She rarely wore shoes and often wore clothes with holes in them to expose more skin to the sun. She described her personal philosophy with the words: “The sun is the greatest beauty doctor. I worship the sun. It is my god.”
Evelyn’s Marriages
Evelyn married Word Leigh, a wealthy Georgian 16 years her senior, around 1917, but they soon divorced. She later married a Nyack taxi driver, Herbert Collishaw. The marriage was kept secret and only came to light when their honeymoon ended in scandal. In November 1931, their horse was confiscated for neglect. The officiant who married them described their first meeting as “love at first sight” and noted that they were “very sweet.” However, their marriage took a tragic turn. A month after the honeymoon, Collishaw “went violently insane” and was committed to the Rockland State Hospital. Lady Leigh, having had enough, left town with her parrot, Jimmy. The bird briefly escaped while traveling on the Nyack Ferry.
She was often referred to as Evelyn Word Leigh, but sometimes, her full name—Evelyn Provost Word Leigh Collishaw—was used.
The Glass House
The Glass House, though not constructed entirely from glass, remains an impressive feat. Builders completed it in 1927 at a cost of $30,000. The house consisted of five block-like glass structures arranged in a large U-shape. Workers covered the northern side of the U with wood, while the other sides featured large glass panes. The roof and side partitions consisted entirely of glass, leaving only a single back wall. A high wire fence surrounded the house.
During its construction, six women worked diligently to complete the house by the summer of 1927. One carpenter expressed his admiration: “I don’t know why someone didn’t think of this before. I would like to have a house like this myself.” The left wing of the house measured approximately 24′ x 18′, while the right wing was slightly larger. The front room, at 48′ x 23′, was the largest. The living room featured a spacious brick fireplace along the wooden wall. Lady Leigh famously predicted, “Who knows, maybe in 50 years, the whole world will live in glass houses.” Little did she know that Philip Johnson’s iconic Glass House, would be built in 1949 in New Canaan, CT.
Life in the Glass House
Leigh intended to practice nudity in her house, and the neighbor kids confirmed that. There was enough glass that Police Sargent Charles Taylor stated that she would need to have curtains. “This is a conservative town. We wear clothes because God intended us to.”
Lady Leigh, Her Parrot, & the Glass House Video
Lady Leigh was rarely seen without her parrot, Jimmy, who traveled with her. Footage of Evelyn in her Glass House can be found in the video “Evelyn Word Leigh: Glass House Lady” by Mark Hatala, published on YouTube on July 30, 1929. The video of Evelyn in the house begins at minute 3:23 and includes appearances by Jimmy the parrot.
Her Horse
Lady Leigh had a deep love for horses, particularly her bay mare named Lady. She rode around Nyack in her phaeton carriage with her rich auburn hair blowing in the wind. Leigh also earned a reputation in Nyack for ordering pants for her horse from a local tailor. She believed these pants would protect her horse from flies, and photos of the “pants-wearing horse” made national headlines. In 1928, her horse bolted while pulling the phaeton, and Lady Leigh crashed near Nyack Hospital. Nearby workers rushed to help her untangle the horse and return the rig home.
Following the Sun–Winter in Florida, Summer in Nyack
Lady Leigh wintered in Florida and Lady traveled with her. She would return to Nyack in the spring. In 1929, she returned early from Florida to settle a lawsuit. Unusually for a naturist, she had to pack 600 dresses, 65 pairs of shoes, and 75 pairs of hose in a hurry. She also complained to the media about the press making fun of her, stating that all she wanted was to live her life in peace. The press reported her daily activities. The Rockland County Leader even created a front page story about Lady Leigh learning to make her own shoes from the village cobbler.
In 1930 she supposedly pulled up in front of the Broadway theater and asked patrolman Frae if a place could not be made for her on the police force. She rode her horse on the new cinder track at the nearby Nyack High School at night much to the annoyance of janitors who had to smooth out the track the next day.
Nyack Beach and Public Reaction
Lady Leigh’s eccentricities extended to Nyack Beach, where she often swam in eye-catching bathing suits. One time in 1930, she wore a plaid suit with dainty ruffles, and the local newspapers took note. She played with children, teaching them to swim, and later found her clothes tied into a knot while she was in the bathhouse. On another occasion, she wore a black-and-white bathing suit with large circles that accentuated her figure. As she crocheted, sewed, and performed her “daily dozen” exercises, she became the subject of much attention.
In the same year, Lady Leigh rode her horse to the beach and stopped in the middle of the road to sew. This caused a traffic jam, and Officer O’Brien had to intervene. She later offered to sell horse rides to children for 25 cents, but the officer informed her that she would need a concessionaire’s license to do so.
Asking for Help
Rumors of Lady Leigh’s fortune from her marriage to Word Leigh may have been exaggerated. In 1931, she appeared gaunt and disheveled at the local newspaper office, pleading for help. She admitted that she was starving and expressed frustration that she couldn’t sell her glass house. The newspaper agreed to publish her plea for work, but by Christmas of that year, Lady Leigh was still living alone in Nyack, unable to return to Florida.
Glass House Vandalized
In June 1936, when Lady Leigh returned to Nyack, she found her glass house vandalized. Broken windows, doors pried open, and personal belongings scattered across the floor greeted her. In a lengthy letter to the newspaper, she referenced a recent speech by President Roosevelt about the sanctity of personality and neighborliness, asking, “If he knew of my miserable existence here, would he do anything about it?”
Leaving Nyack
In 1940, Lady Leigh left Nyack for good. Her personal property, including her buggy, was auctioned off. The house sold for a mere $1,000 to Mrs. Anette Schofield, who remodeled it into a conventional dwelling, forever losing the iconic Glass House to history.
By 1944, Lady Leigh had relocated permanently to Miami, where she embraced moon worship. Dressed in a flowing red gown, her auburn hair still cascading around her, she held classes in metaphysical healing, herbology, and the arts. She also assumed the title of Lady of the Moon, High Priestess of the Cultural Arts Comradeship Cult. Lady Leigh passed away in Florida in 1974 at the age of 82.
Two views of the house at 19 Central Avenue that replaced the Glass House. Placed well back from the street on a one-acre plot, the house afforded views of the Hudson River.
Mike Hays lived in the Nyacks for 38-years. He worked for McGraw-Hill Education in New York City for many years. Hays serves as President of the Historical Society of the Nyacks, Vice-President of the Edward Hopper House Museum & Study Center, and Upper Nyack Historian. Married to Bernie Richey, he enjoys cycling and winters in Florida. You can follow him on Instagram as UpperNyackMike.
Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by Sun River Health and Ellis Sotheby’s International Realty. Sun River Health is a network of 43 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) providing primary, dental, pediatric, OB-GYN, and behavioral health care to over 245,000 patients annually. Ellis Sotheby’s International Realty is the lower Hudson Valley’s Leader in Luxury. Located in the charming Hudson River village of Nyack, approximately 22 miles from New York City. Our agents are passionate about listing and selling extraordinary properties in the Lower Hudson Valley, including Rockland and Orange Counties, New York.
