They Were the Richest American Family, What Happened to the Vanderbilts?

Temples of unbridled luxury, the opulent Vanderbilt mansions epitomize the soaring wealth of the Gilded Age. Beginning in the late 1870s, the family's scions competed against each other to build the biggest, most lavish homes with platinum walls, mountains of marble and even parts of New York's original Central Station thrown into the mix. But within a couple of generations, all but one of these properties was lost as their fortune dwindled. Click through to feast your eyes on the illustrious dynasty's most magnificent manses and uncover their intriguing secrets.