East Hampton’s legendary Gray Gardens to hold estate sale

Local history buffs will have a chance to explore the legendary Grey Gardens home in East Hampton and pick up a souvenir during an estate sale this weekend.

Shoppers can take home antique furniture that is seen in a 1975 documentary, “Grey Gardens,” that made the property famous, as well as tour the fabled gray-walled garden, said Susan Wexler, the sale’s organizer.

“The house is chock full of goodies at every price range, from a couple dollars up to thousands, but there’s something for everybody,” said Wexler, of the Bridgehampton-based company Behind the Hedgerows. “It’s a treasure trove.”

The 1897 house was featured in the documentary (and later a Broadway musical) about the home’s then-owners “Big Edie” Bouvier Beale and daughter “Little Edie” Beale, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’ aunt and cousin. The two were living in squalor.

Journalist Sally Quinn and her husband, Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee, purchased the house in 1979 and restored it. Bradlee died in 2014. Quinn put the house on the market with an asking price of $19.995 million earlier this year.

The house must be cleaned out by the time the contract with the buyers goes through, Wexler said. The new owners and the selling price have not been disclosed.

Items belonging to Quinn and Bradlee, including writing desks, will also be sold on a first-come, first-served basis.

Wexler acknowledged that “a lot of people will just come for the entertainment” and experience of being on the property.

The sale at 3 West End Road is to be held Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Parking is available at Georgica Beach.

By Rachelle Blidner

rachelle.blidner@newsday.com@rachelleblidner

Rachelle Blidner covers Suffolk County government, politics and breaking news.