Sorry for the huge pic but it is worth the
wait!
While it loads let me give you some background on Jorstadt Castle.
Algonquin and Huron tribes visited Lone Star Island frequently as artifacts found there tell us. Later, Lone Star Island was renamed Dark Island, a name that has stuck in everyone's mind to this day, even though it has again been renamed, so today it is officially Jorstadt Island.
In the late 1800s Ernest Flagg, renowned architect of the time, was commissioned by Fredrick Bourne, President of the Singer Sewing Machine Company, to design a hunting lodge and retreat for his family. Flagg had recently finished reading the novel Woodstock by Sir Walter Scott, in which was described in great detail, a now defunct hunting lodge called Castle Woodstock. This lodge was used by Charles III during his quest to regain the throne of England! Flagg used Castle Woodstock as the basis of his designs for Commodore Bourne's hunting lodge. How much hunting can you do on an 8 acre island? During my stay deer, fox, rabbits and many other animals crossed the winter ice and spent a bit of time at the castle! Mostly though it was a retreat to get away from it all. The North boathouse was built to accommodate his huge yacht the Corinth. The amazing thing about it's 8+ years of construction is that Commodore Bourne didn't tell his family any details about his project so they had no inkling what to expect until they rounded Oak Island and saw it for the first time in 1904!
In 1896 construction began by the J.B. &
R.L. Reid Company of Alexandria Bay. American and Canadian workers were hired
and Italian stone
cutters were employed to carve the granite stones in the local Oak Island,
Hammond, and also Canadian quarries and fit
them in the construction of it's 28 rooms and 13 fireplaces. They then moved on
to work at Boldt Castle a few miles up river.
The first building completed was the North Boathouse, able to house a 100 foot
yacht and lift it out of the water for repairs or winter storage. It's Generator
Room provided needed power to assist in the construction, and the building
served well as base to supervise the project from. Work continued year round
with winter being particularly productive as the materials could be hauled
across the ice saving considerable handling over loading them on barges!
Commodore Bourne named his Castle "The Towers" and in 1965 it was renamed "Jorstadt Castle" by it's new owners Dr. Harold and Eloise Martin. The Martins, devoted evangelists, had numerous camps and schools for disadvantaged children in Canada. By chance they found a great bargain on the island and purchased it from the LaSalle Military Academy, who received it as a bequest from the Bourne family many years before, to be used as a non-denominational religious retreat.
The island was originally surrounded but red, white and blue lights giving it a patriotic and gala appearance. The South Boathouse had covers for the boat slips to provide a dance floor and big bands from the city could be seen and heard through the open side doors. Isadora Duncan was a regular visitor to the island and one of Bourne's sons sired a child with her.
Numerous additions were added at a later time. The Clock Room, Master Bedroom, Breakfast Room and Squash Court were not part of the original construction but were added about 20 years later.