 John D. Rockefeller, Jr. purchased the estate from his father in 1923 and, with New York City architect Andrew J. Thomas, planned an upscale residential and commercial development featuring distinctive French Norman style architecture.Although the Great Depression forced Rockefeller to suspend operations, following World War II others were drawn to Forest Hill to build comfortable colonial and contemporary ranch homes on the remaining open land.Design principles of the Rockefeller-Thomas plan were extended to the later development and today Forest Hill is a rich tapestry of people, homes and gardens.