More about Castle Otttis

 One of the castle’s hand-built wooden staircase that leads from the choir to the sanctuary floor. The spiral construction not only saves space, but it also leads the eye upward in contemplation of the celestial. Illuminated by its arched windows, the sanctuary has a dirt floor. The wooden ornamentation is  made of cypress and southern heart-pine to stand up to the open air and the elements. None of Castle Otttis' 88 windows is glazed, much like real castles that haven’t been renovated for habitation. Because the castle also is not electrified, the only light available comes from candlelight and day light.View the list »
 If you’ve tooled down a certain section of A1A, you’ve seen the crenellated battlements of Castle Otttis. Modeled on a 1,000-year-old Irish Castle, Castle Otttis took seven years to complete. Intended as a place for quiet contemplation, it also hires out for weddings.

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Castle Otttis isn’t even the oddest thing about St. Augustine, and still you have to admit that it’s own kind of odd.

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And that A1A at the beach is an odd place to find an authentic Irish-style castle, whether St. Augustine is just up the road or not.

If you stop for a moment to remember all Florida’s historical baggage with Spain and its Irish governors, maybe we should have expected that eventually GreaterJax™ would have an Irish castle to go with the French forts and the Castillo de San Marcos.

Check the list pages here to see some interiors.

(To learn even more about Castle Ottis, click here.)

At 50 feet high and an estimated 7 million pounds, Castle Otttis is an impressive structure.

Situated about three miles north of St. Augustine on A1A, Castle construction began in 1984. The concrete-block-and-poured-concrete exterior was completed in 1988, and the builders took another three years – until 1991 – to finish the interior with cypress wood and southern heart-pine ornamentation.

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OFFICIAL BIO: K Truitt is a second-generation, native Floridian born in Jacksonville. Truitt worked in public higher education for 25 years and knows newspaper publishing, printing and graphic design. Contact: kt.4examiner@yahoo.com

View the list
  •  If you’ve tooled down a certain section of A1A, you’ve seen the crenellated battlements of Castle Otttis. Modeled on a 1,000-year-old Irish Castle, Castle Otttis took seven years to complete. Intended as a place for quiet contemplation, it also hires out for weddings.
  •  None of Castle Otttis' 88 windows is glazed, much like real castles that haven’t been renovated for habitation. Because the castle also is not electrified, the only light available comes from candlelight and day light.
  •  Illuminated by its arched windows, the sanctuary has a dirt floor. The wooden ornamentation is  made of cypress and southern heart-pine to stand up to the open air and the elements.
  •  One of the castle’s hand-built wooden staircase that leads from the choir to the sanctuary floor. The spiral construction not only saves space, but it also leads the eye upward in contemplation of the celestial.
View the list

, Greater Jacksonville Examiner

K Truitt is a second-generation, native Floridian born in Jacksonville. Truitt worked in public higher education for 25 years, most recently in Texas, is a successful grant writer, knows newspaper publishing, printing and graphic design and wants to work in the public sector. Contact: kt...

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