Squire's Castle

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Squire's Castle

Squire's Castle is located in the North Chagrin Reservation of the Cleveland Metroparks in Willoughby Hills, Ohio (visible from River Road). It was built in the 1890s by Feargus B. Squire for use as the gatekeeper's house for his future country estate, which was never built. Squire, a founder of Standard Oil Company, bought the surrounding 525 acres (2.1 km²) of land but never completed the project. Squire sold the property in 1922 and the Cleveland Metroparks acquired it in 1925. Today Squire's Castle is open to the public free-of-admission. The Willoughby Hills Public Library annually holds a history seminar there. The surrounding park offers a footpath, riding trails, cooking grills, and a large grassy field.

The second edition of The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History describes Squire's Castle as "a picturesque castellated and turreted ruin"; it goes on to note that "seriously vandalized and deteriorated, ...[r]enovations in 1995 included painting the ground floor of the castle with a waxed coating to deter vandalism" (p. 953).

Squire's Castle has now acquired a sense of mystery. It is purportedly haunted by Squire's wife, Rebecca. An urban legend says she tripped and broke her neck there, but in reality, she died in Wickliffe, Ohio, in 1929, after the property was sold. The castle has also been featured in the local sketch comedy show Big Chuck and Lil' John as the Castle of Doom.

[edit] References

Van Tassel, David. D. and John J. Grabowski, eds. The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History 2nd. ed. Indianapolis: Indiana University Press in association with Case Western Reserve University and the Western Reserve Historical Society, 1996.