At Simla Beebe and his team worked closely together with Asa and Newcome Wright, the owners of the adjacent Spring Hill estate, who provided accommodations for them while water and electricity were connected at Simla. Although the initial purchase of Simla had contained only the house and of the forest surrounding it, Beebe soon realized that this was insufficient for the research he wished to conduct, and purchased another neighboring estate known as St. Pat's which contained an additional . In 1953, Beebe donated both properties to the New York Zoological Society for one dollar, giving him the position of one of the society's "Benefactors in Perpetuity".