Enter through the Lower Middle Room. This is probably the most memorable room in the house due to its large collection of swords, pistols and muskets. Their arrangement is not merely decorative--the Governor and his men always needed to be ready in case of insurrections. To the left of this room is the first in a line of service rooms. To the right is the paneled front parlor with an adjoining closet.
Continue north from the Lower Middle Room. To the left, you'll see a steep service staircase that goes from the basement to the attic. You will also see the main staircase, which serves the first and second floors. To the right, is the Great Dining Room, site of many formal evenings. It is decorated with classical moldings and Corinthian pilasters.
Go from the back hall out of the main block of the house into the ballroom, which features a coved ceiling and, over a doorway, the King's initials carved on a shield. Beyond this is the supper room; the largest dining room in the house, with a door leading out to the extensive Palace grounds.
Return to the stair hall and go up to the second floor. Start at the first room on the northwest side. This was once furnished as a study but is now depicted as a governess' room. This room connects via a short passageway to the guest room on the southwest corner, which can also be reached through the Upper Middle Room, over the entrance. The Upper Middle Room was a family sitting room, library and dressing room. The bedroom of the Governor's wife occupies the southeast corner, and through another passageway connects to the Great Bed Chamber of the Governor, on the northeast corner. The area over the ballroom was thought to be a nursery. The attic contains eight rooms, three closets and stairs to the cupola atop the house, while the basement includes many rooms for the storage of beer, wine, cheese and other goods.
Proceed outside to examine the grounds and outbuildings, where much of the Palace staff worked. To the east and west of the forecourt--on the southern entrance of the Palace--are the Advance buildings, Both are one-and-a-half-stories tall, with two rooms upstairs and two rooms down. The building to the east housed the Governor's offices, while the one to the west was a headquarters for the guards. Southeast of the Palace is the stable yard, which includes two coach houses, a stable and restrooms. Southwest of the Palace is another enclosed yard that includes the kitchen, scullery and laundry, with a kitchen garden off the west.
Explore the gardens. These include the ballroom garden, fruit garden, box garden, bowling green and terraced or "falling" gardens, as well as a canal, maze, an ice house inside of a man-made hill, and a graveyard to unknown soldiers and other casualties of the American Revolution.
