When I think of castles, I immediately think of the castles of Europe. Most of these castles are now in ruins, with a few that remain in their former glory. These ancient relics are something I would love to explore, but I do not think it will ever be possible. Canada and the USA are full of forts, but not castles.
Then again, maybe I am wrong.
To my surprise, we have visited a number of places that could be described as castle-like. Casa Loma in Toronto, a place we have been to numerous times, was built in the style of a castle. Although not really a castle since it was not built in defence of the region, which was the primary purpose of castles in Europe, it still has the appeal of looking and feeling like stepping into a medieval wonder.
I can see how castles can be romanticized. If I were to build a home one day, it would be in the style of a castle. I would have a moat, a large gate entrance, a huge dining hall, and many towers. We have visited places that could be called castles, built with the romantic ideals of a castle.
Loveland Castle
Called Loveland because it is located in Loveland, Ohio, this castle was the tireless effort of one man, walking back and forth to the river to collect the stones he needed to single-handedly build a castle of his own. Built over decades, it was never really finished. Sir Harry Delos Andrews (not actually knighted by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth) loved the ideals of knighthood and hated the modern weapons of World War I. During this war, he served as a nurse rather than a soldier. He would get deathly ill at the end of the war, be declared dead, and then return home to discover his bride had remarried. After touring Europe and all the castles it holds, he decided to build his own castle at the end of a steep road, near a river, and created the Knights of the Golden Trail. He would continue to improve his castle right up to his 90th year.
We visited this unique place on August 29, 2025, as part of my ” I Am Not Feeling Well” series. I Need Some Vitamin CCC trip. The entry fee into this former home of Sir Harry and the current residence of the KOGT was very small. To best appreciate the time it takes to build a stone structure all by yourself, one needs to take time in discovering all the nooks and crannies. Although you will not see stunning architectural designs here, you will see a labour of love that took decades and remains unfinished.
Fonthill Castle
This place is much like Loveland Castle, but instead of one man doing all the work, it was one man who told several unskilled, untrained labourers what to build and how to build it. Henry Mercer Chapman needed a place to showcase his collection of tiles and prints, as well as a home. He had a measure of wealth, having been successful in owning a tile factory, and used it to pursue his interest in ancient artifacts. He would also build the Mercer Museum, which is close by, and it holds a collection of the things he found interesting and worth saving.
Fonthill was built a section at a time. When walking through the home, it becomes obvious that some rooms were added after others were completed. Staircases that are a little too narrow. Passageways that get cramped. Rooms on different levels, even half levels from one another. Today, it is doubtful that a building like this, constructed without plans, would pass basic building standards. But in the freedom of his day, when he wanted another room, or bathroom, or study, or whatever, he hired some locals and got them to do it. When we visited, it was at Christmas time. It is a place I would consider seeing again to do a proper tour and learn more about this man and his interest in building a rather unique home.
We toured Fonthill as part of our trip: Philadelphia – The City of Christmasly Love on December 28, 2025.
Glencairn Museum
At first, Glencairn looks like a castle, but the more one looks at it, the more it looks like a cathedral. This had to be one of the most amazing dwellings to visit. A full-out church that functioned like a home. The Pitcairns were deeply religious people and celebrated their faith by collecting religious art and artifacts. Today, it serves as a museum, and it was also part of our trip: Philadelphia – The City of Christmasly Love which we toured on December 27, 2025. We had come to this location to see their Christmas displays and Nativity Sets from around the world. We also did a brief guided tour and learned more about the family and their history. Raymond and Mildred Pitcairn were instrumental in building the community surrounding Glencairn and were generous with their wealth, helping to fund many key buildings that continue to operate today. This museum offers many different types of tours and is likely a place we will visit outside the Christmas season to learn more and see more of this family.
Hartman Rock Garden
Fine, this is not a castle. It is a model of a castle, and other things, built to look like a castle. Assembled by Ben Hartman between 1932 and 1944, this was a means of expression and even escapism. Not being able to freely travel, he had to build places he wanted to visit. His work would have continued, but he died in 1944 from a disease he contracted from his line of work. Later, this fun little backyard of a working man became an attraction for people to visit for free. This was part of our I Am Not Feeling Well. I Need Some Vitamin CCC, which we saw on August 27, 2025. It is great that the community came together to preserve this artwork, which is a must-visit for Springfield, Ohio.
Casa Loma
It has to be amazing to be so wealthy that you can build yourself a castle and fill it with all the luxuries that you deserve. Or that was the plan. Shortly after its construction, the home’s occupants lost all their money in a stock market crash. This huge building was abandoned. Then turned into a hotel. It was ultimately purchased by the city and turned into a museum.
I have been to Casa Loma a few times before I met my wife, and since we married, I have taken her several times. There are the standard self-guided tours, plus Hallowe’en and Christmas-themed events, which we have partaken in. A highly popular attraction in Toronto, I have never seen it not busy. Parking is an issue. But once you get in, it is stellar and gobsmacking! The building is large and seems to go on forever, with all the floors, rooms, and even access to the attic.
Squire’s Castle
There are the remains of a castle-like building in a park in Cleveland, OH. We toured this park, the abandoned building and the waterfalls in the area as part of our Cleveland Road Trip back on August 25, 2023. What we saw was not in fact a castle, but was meant to be the gatehouse of a mansion that was never constructed (again, the money disappeared). It is free to enter and explore. The most notable thing for us at this park was that three tornadoes occurred, and the accompanying windstorm left significant damage in the area.
Boldt Castle
On June 10, 2022, we did a circle tour of Lake Ontario. This was during a time when I did not keep my itineraries, nor did I share them online, so there is no link I can share with you for everything we did on this long weekend adventure. I can share that Boldt Castle made my wife cry.
This mansion of love, built for a beloved wife, is accessible only by boat. On the boat, we heard that this place had lain abandoned for decades and had been repeatedly vandalized. The reason it was never occupied is that the wife for whom the mansion was built died. George C. Boldt never had it in his heart to set foot on the island again and never allowed construction to be completed.
Today, it has been largely restored, and we were able to tour the island and all it had to offer. The first thing we noticed was all the hearts found in the fences, gardens, artwork, architecture, and more. This clearly was meant for Louise Boldt, the subject and reason for the construction of Boldt Castle. Walking through the various rooms and seeing what was hoped to be a family home proved overwhelming for my own wife. She was overcome by the display of affection, and the story of the major heartbreak that happened was intense.
It is a beautiful place to visit. Accessible from either the Canadian or American sides of the border, it is a place that needs to be visited to understand that there are some really great mansions in this world and that even the rich and powerful can suffer devastating loss.
Singer Castle
The same boat that took us to Boldt Castle also took us to Singer Castle (named after Singer sewing machines). Built at the same time as Boldt, it was completed and occupied by the intended residents. Today, it serves as a place for tours, weddings and even overnight stays.
I watched a lot of Scooby-Doo when I was a kid, and I had the odd feeling that maybe Singer Castle was the inspiration for this cartoon series. There are hidden passageways, hidden closets and cupboards, tunnels, and so many other things to discover. All the rooms are fully furnished, and during the tour, we were told we were not allowed to touch anything. This is standard museum policy, but we were then told that if we wanted to touch everything and explore the mansion unrestricted, we would have to rent a room for the night. We had considered it, but it was out of our price range.
Considering the large number of people at Boldt and how few were at Singer, I can see that this unique and fun location is often overlooked. If visiting Boldt, be sure to visit Singer.
Castle Kilbride
We visited this location as part of a trip on August 2, 2019 and then again for their Christmas setup on November 28, 2019. This is probably one of the smaller mansions we have ever visited. More of a large home than a castle, it is featured in many movies and television series. We were watching a couple of shows and said, “Hey, we have been there!”
Castle Kilbride is one of those annoying places that ban photography. They had someone on a tour years prior taking pictures, and those pictures ended up in a magazine story. They feel that, since people saw the magazine, there was no need to visit the Castle in person. I completely disagree. It is because of pictures that I want to visit a place in person and bring my wife along to experience it. Simply seeing pictures does not convey a location’s feeling, meaning, or emotion. Pictures confirm I want to go there, not skip it for something else.
Sorry, no pics here.
Dundurn Castle
In Hamilton, ON, overlooking Lake Ontario, is a large mansion that played a part in the founding of Canada. When I took my wife here when we first started travelling, we discovered a link between this site and many others we had seen that year. We had inadvertently been learning about William Lyon Mackenzie that summer and the connection this man had in laying the foundation of Canada. Every site we had visited prior to Dundurn Castle was in praise of Mackenzie. But at Dundurn was a man who opposed Mackenzie with everything he had. Sir Allan MacNab was a Premier of the Province of Canada, and what Mackenzie was doing was in opposition to MacNab. It was interesting to see the connections between sites as we started travelling, even though we had no intention of looking for them.
Dundurn Castle is today a National Historic Site and offers guided tours regularly. It is a busy location and a great way to learn about the area’s wealth and history prior to Canada’s creation. As part of my own history, I remember my parents taking me here when I was young. Several years later, I escorted a small group of exchange students to see Dundurn. There was another time when I brought my wife, and another when I brought my mother. I have visited this place more than any other castle, with the exception of Casa Loma.
Castle Museum of Saginaw County History
Today, it serves as a regional museum, but its intended purpose was a post office. We would tour this building during our Christmas in Frankenmuth trip on December 17, 2022. This large, ornate building is a high-quality museum that features local history. There is a reasonable entry fee to the museum, and there is an area where upper management could spy on employees. Inside is not castle-like; only the outside has that appearance. It is worth the visit.
Hammond Castle Museum
We toured the creation of an inventor. John Hays Hammond had always wanted his home to become a museum, and he built it with that in mind. Acquiring his wealth from patents he sold, he knew everything he had invented would become obsolete eventually and wanted to leave something behind that was meaningful. This place was unique in that we had a guided tour, then were allowed to roam freely afterwards. We had the pleasure of touring this one-of-a-kind building on July 22, 2024, as part of our Summer Coastal Drive trip.
Castle Hill on the Crane Estate
The day after visiting Hammond Castle Museum, we visited someone’s cottage. Yeah, this place is a cottage! I cannot imagine what Richard Teller Crane Jr.’s regular house looked like. We have seen Crane products around, namely bathroom fixtures such as toilets, urinals, and tubs. This location was built to keep people clean, and they used much of that wealth to turn it into a magnificent cottage. We spent a long time exploring the grounds before we entered the mansion for a tour. The guided tour was unlike any we had experienced; we were given a card from a former guest to the Cranes and were expected to act accordingly. It was fun. On the tour, we learned the family was like every other family in the world, except they were richer than anyone could imagine.
- All of these places can be found on my favourite map, All The Places We Have Been.
- One thing I have learned from visiting all these places is that wealth can be lost much faster than it is gained. This is why so many are now museums and no longer continue as residences.
