Fonthill Castle June 23, 2022

 

The Wikipedia entry will give the story: Fonthill Castle was the home of the archaeologist and tile maker Henry Chapman Mercer. Built between 1908 and 1912 in Henrico, VA, it is an early example of poured-in-place concrete and features 44 rooms, over 200 windows, 18 fireplaces, 10 bathrooms and one powder room. The interior was originally painted in pastel colors, but age and sunlight have all but eradicated any hint of the former hues. One room in the Terrace Pavilion (built on the site of the former home's barn), has a restored paint job so visitors can view the home's former glory. The castle contains built-in furniture and is embellished with decorative tiles, made by Mercer at the height of the Arts and Crafts movement. The castle is filled with an extensive collection of ceramics embedded in the concrete of the house, as well as other artifacts from his world travels, including cuneiform tablets discovered in Mesopotamia dating back to over 2300 BCE. The home also contains around 1,000 prints from Mercer's extensive collection, as well as over six thousand books, almost all of which were annotated by Mercer himself.

The Castle was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972, and was later included in a National Historic Landmark District along with the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works and the Mercer Museum. These three structures are the only poured-in-place concrete structures built by Mercer. The walls, ceilings, roofs, floors and even some of the furniture are all poured concrete. He used no mechanized equipment in construction. He had 10 men and 1 horse throughout all the construction. The Moravian Pottery and Tile Works is located on the same property as Fonthill Castle, and the Mercer Museum is located about a mile away.

Fonthill Castle and the Mercer Museum are owned and operated by the Bucks County Historical Society, whereas the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works is operated by the County of Bucks.

This place is amazing. The approach to the house is through an Allee of sycamores. The house itself from the outside does not betray the wonders inside.

The castle was appended to a house that was already on-site when Henry Mercer bought the property with money left him by his aunt.

He designed everything inside and out. He made the castle entrance to resemble the entrance to a cave, reminiscent of the caves he accessed in his work as an archeologist. He blackened the ceiling of the entrance to complete the effect. All the 44 rooms are adorned on walls and ceilings with his tile work or art he collected. It's mind-blowing when you consider this.

Photos are here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/2pz5gGNS1gm1d1V8A

In the photos, the castle looks black. It's completely made of concrete, and the heavy rain of the day before darkened it. When dry, it's gray.