Built 1914 NRHP Reference # 80002804 Area 2 ha | Architectural style Other, English manor Opened 1914 Added to NRHP 22 October 1980 | |
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Similar Zealandia, Battery Park Hotel, Asheville Ghost Tours: Ol, Blue Ridge Mountains, The Omni Grove Park Inn | ||
Ask 13 overlook castle
Overlook Castle or Seely Castle is a historic house in Asheville, North Carolina. It was built from 1912–14 for Fred Loring Seely, the son in law of Edwin Wiley Grove. He built the castle after his father-in-law gave him ten acres on top of Sunset Mountain. The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 22, 1980.
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History
The Castle, at 22,000 square feet in size, has had six known owners. The Seelys lived there until 1942, when Mr. Seely died at age 70. Mrs. Seely then moved to the Battery Park Hotel in downtown Asheville. In the winter of 1949, Evelyn Grove Seely, daughter of entrepreneur Edwin Wiley Grove and widow of Fred Seely, offered to sell her former home to the second owner, Asheville-Biltmore College. The college was there from 1949 to 1961, until they outgrew the available facilities. The limited area for developing new buildings caused the trustees to move the college to its current site on the northern edge of Asheville. The UNCA trustees sold the Castle and surrounding acreage to the Holiday Inn chain. They were the third owners. They kept some of the land behind the Castle and built a Holiday Inn building on this land. The county did not know the building was intended to be a commercial hotel so the owners were not granted a final permit. The owners converted the massive new block shaped building into a condominium complex (units selling for $99,000 in 2014). The chain owners sold the Castle and surrounding landscaped hillside to Jerry Sternberg for $40,000. He was the fourth owner. He convinced his wife that she would enjoy the Castle since she could have a 1,000 square foot closet. He upgraded the heating system from coal to oil fuel and put a new roof on the structure. He planned to turn the house into a museum but his plan never came to fruition. He then sought to turn the facility over to a non-profit organization. Overlook Ministries was the fifth owner. The sixth and current owner is the Wells family. They acquired it in 1984 and restored it to its original splendor.
Architecture
The castle has two large glass windows that offer a panoramic view of Asheville. There are Jacobean ceilings. The castle is situated on the top of the mountain and is surrounded by English gardens.
Uncited
The story goes that at the time the castle was built, if the structure was not complete, it was not taxable. Supposedly, after completion of the main portion of the castle, a small jagged wall was built on the roof.
It was said that Thomas Edison wired the castle for electricity. As of 1977, as told by the owners at that time, some of the light bulbs in some of the chandeliers, installed by Edison, still existed and were in working order. It was also said at that time, that Edison had wired the fireplace in the library to move away to expose a closet where Mrs. Seely could have stored her furs.
