NEWS

A brief history of Tarleton Castle

A brief history of Tarleton Castle The Castle was a project that I needed to make, having always wanted to build a tower. As the structure came together, I realized that it must be shared with others. Since I arrived in the North Country many years ago, I felt there...

Henry Mercer

Henry Mercer When I was a boy, my parents took me to the Mercer Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. It is a fabulous castle structure made entirely of reinforced concrete. It was designed and built by Henry Chapman Mercer. He was an archaeologist from Bucks County,...

Castle Construction Timeline 2004

Castle Construction Timeline 2004 In May of 2004, I felled trees and cleared the land for the castle and the septic system, using my jeep to skid the logs. In the woodshop, I started to cut the components for the foundation forms. In order to keep the concrete from...

Castle Construction Timeline 2005 – 2006

Castle Construction in 2005 The erection of the post and beam started this year. I cut mortise and tenon joints in each bent section. Then they were assembled lying flat on the deck. Once fitted and pegged together, I levered them to sawhorse height and then the winch...

Pennsylvania Railroad

Pennsylvania Railroad In a previous blog, I wrote about the effect that Henry Chapman Mercer and his fantastic concrete buildings had upon my designs. There were many more architectural influences in the area where I was raised. In and around Philadelphia,...

Castle Construction Timeline 2007

Castle Construction in 2007 Early in 2007, I decked level five. The next project was to prepare for the roof cone. Level six is only half of the circle, the other half is open to view the interior of the cone to the peak. To facilitate the installation of the cone, I...

Castle Construction Timeline 2008 – 2012

Castle Construction in 2008 2008 was an entire year of sheathing. The roof sheathing was completed, then the tower and lower conventional walls. Logistics were slow with staging, cutting, and placing boards. The large brackets that will support the balcony on the...

Castle Construction Timeline 2013 – 2014

Castle Construction in 2013 The large tamarack brackets to support the tower cone were fabricated and installed now; Forrest Towne and Joe Shelton helped with this work. Joe capped each top member of the brackets with a little copper roof. The balance of the interface...

Tarleton Castle from Structure to Organization

Tarleton Castle from Structure to Organization How can we bring the structure that I have been working on for ten years to completion? How can we help it to become an entity, a foundation for the arts? Can an Appalachian thru-hiker help? In January of 2014, my...

Interactive

Interactive In an age where many things are handed to us on a platter, pre-packaged, unalterable, take-it-or-leave-it, we counter by making things “interactive”. We design websites and products in an attempt to engage the “user”. Tarleton Castle has become...

Dreams

Dreams This is the remains of a 1936 Ford V8 wagon. These wooden-bodied cars have been called by various names: "Beach Wagons", "Depot Hacks", and the most popular "Woodys". It was built at a time when the automotive design was transitioning from the vestiges of...

Castle Details

Castle Details Applying finish details is still in the future of the Castle, but they are very much in my thoughts. This fall, I attended the intercollegiate iron pour at Salem Art Works, in Salem, New York. While there, I was invited to come to Alfred University's...

Castle Construction Timeline 2015-2016

Castle Construction Timeline - 2015 Castle Construction Timeline - In the Spring of 2015, we had hoped to resume the great progress we had made with the lime plaster stucco, but discovered that the stucco had not weathered the harsh northern winter temperatures....