In Missouri, an Italian Renaissance-Style Castle Asks $24.75M
Date Posted: February 11, 2020
Posted In: News,
From Wall Street Journal: Outside the small city of Festus, Mo., a 19th-century castle modeled after a château on Italy’s Lake Como, is coming on the market for $24.75 million.
The extravagant property is far from typical for the area. About 40 miles south of St. Louis, Festus has a population under 12,000, and its median home price is $176,640. “We don’t get many castles in Missouri,” quipped listing agent Mike Hanrahan of Cushman & Wakefield
Situated on roughly 2,400 acres and on a high bluff overlooking the Mississippi River, the 12,000-square-foot, 9-bedroom property was designed in the style of Castello di Vezio, Mr. Hanrahan said. The interiors include elaborate moldings, frescos and decorative fireplaces. There are panoramic views of the tree-lined Selma Valley of southeastern Missouri.
The castle has hosted numerous guests including Queen Victoria’s son, the future King Edward VII, according to Lisa Gendron of the local Jefferson County historical society, who has written a book on the property.
The castle was built in the 1850s by the Kennett family, who were involved in lead mining and in the steamboat business. At the time, the property had its own Catholic chapel and post office. The limestone for the facade was quarried on the property, likely using slave labor, Ms. Gendron said.
A shot tower on a bluff facing the castle was used by both sides during the Civil War. Union troops took over the cliffside and established a cavalry barracks on the estate.
The property was later owned by Robert Somers Brookings, the original founder of the Brookings Institution, the nonprofit public policy organization, and St. Louis industrialist William Schock. After a fire damaged the property in the 1930s, the Schock family rebuilt it as close to the original as possible, Ms. Gendron said. She noted that Mr. Schock’s wife made numerous trips to Europe to purchase furnishings for the castle, including a wall covering for the dining room that remains to this day.