You don't have to journey to far away places to explore magnificent castles, secret passageways, and medieval moats. You can find these amazing places right here at home in your backyard.
Hammond Castle is situated on a hill overlooking the Atlantic Ocean along the rocky coast of Gloucester, Massachusetts. The castle was built between 1926 and 1929 as a wedding present for his wife Irene Fenton Hammond. It became both the residence and laboratory of John Hays Hammond, Jr. John Hammond was an inventor and innovator of the remote control and held over four hundred patents.
His love for medieval art was the reason that he designed the castle in such a way to showcase his collection. The structure features a combination of 15th, 16th, and 18th century designs. Much of the interior of the castle are actual parts of European castles, churches and buildings that John Hammond had shipped over from Europe. The castle also features a great hall, pipe organ including an indoor courtyard with a two-story meat market and wine merchant's house brought over from southern France, and a secret passageway.
Today, the castle operates as the Hammond Castle Museum, with self-guided tours available. Visitors can explore the eight chambers, a stylish courtyard, two towers and an elaborate ballroom. For the past 25 years, the castle has run annual Renaissance Faire fund-raisers, psychic gatherings, and a Halloween haunted house that attracts thousands of visitors every October.
Hammond Castle provides schools and tour groups with a number of educational programs and prearranged tours.
For more information and tour schedule, visit the Hammond Castle website.
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