Boldt Castle
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Image:BoldtCastle aerial.jpg Image:Heart Island 1 db.jpg Boldt Castle, located on Heart Island (New York) in the Thousand Islands of the St. Lawrence River, along the northern border of New York State, is the major landmark and tourist attraction of the region.
George Boldt, proprietor of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City and his family for several summers enjoyed an earlier frame cottage on Hart Island (the original name) which they greatly expanded. In 1900 the Boldts launched an ambitious construction campaign to build a huge masonry structure, one of the largest private homes in America. They engaged hundreds of workers for a six-story "castle," a major international landmark. In addition four other masonry structures on the island are architecturally notable. Equally distinctive is a huge yacht house on a neighboring island where the Boldts had another summer home and a vast estate, incorporating farms, canals, a golf course, tennis courts, stables, and a polo field.
The construction of Boldt Castle ceased abruptly in early 1904 after the death of Boldt's wife, Louise Kehrer Boldt. For 73 years, the castle and other stone structures were left exposed to the harsh winter weather and occasional vandals. The Thousand Islands Bridge Authority acquired Heart Island and the nearby yacht house in 1977, for one dollar, under the agreement that all revenues obtained from the castle operation would be applied towards restoration, so that the island would be preserved for the enjoyment of future generations. Since the purchase of the island several million dollars have been used to restore and improve the Heart Island structures.
Today, Boldt Castle is accessible by ferry from Alexandria Bay, Gananoque, Ontario, Rockport, Ontario, and Ivy Lea, Ontario, and most of the grounds and buildings can be explored by the public for a fee. The boat-owning public may also dock on Heart Island for free and there is a US Customs and Immigration office on Hart Island. International visitors coming from Canada should have appropriate identification.
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References
- Lucas, Roger. Boldt Castle, Heart Island. Cheektowaga, N.Y.: Research Review Publications, 1992.
- Malo, Paul. Boldt Castle: In Search of the Lost Story. Fulton, N.Y.: Laurentian Press, 2001.