Travel Guide: Gillette Castle State Park in Connecticut - Yahoo Voices - voices.yahoo.com

When stage actor William Gillette died in 1937, his will noted that under no circumstances should the distinctive stone house that he'd taken years to build go to "some blithering sap-head who has no conception of where he is or with what surrounded". To respect his wishes, and to the benefit of Connecticut residents, the state bought the property and turned Gillette Castle and its grounds into a state park.

Today, over 100,000 visitors a year tour Gillette's one-of-a-kind home and the Connecticut state park. The 24-room stone castle was built over a period of five years by a team of twenty workmen, all laboring under Gillette's direct supervision. In the process, they incorporated many features that Gillette designed himself.

The interior woodwork in the castle is hand-cut oak. There are forty-seven doors in the house, and no two are alike. Each door features a distinctive hand-carved wooden latch. Each light switch is decorated in hand-carved wood as well. Even the furniture reflects Gillette's knack for invention. Visitors to the castle marvel at the built-in wood-and-stone couches, a movable table mounted on tracks, and the ingenious system of hidden mirrors that allows someone in the master bedroom to see into the public rooms.

Gillette built his medieval mansion in East Haddam, Connecticut at the top the southern-most hill in a chain known as the Seven Sisters, and named his one hundred and eighty-four acre estate "The Seventh Sister." The castle's garden commands a beautiful view of the Connecticut River below.

The grounds of Gillette Castle State Park include many more of Gillette's quirky designs. What was once a private narrow-gauge railroad is now a three-mile hiking trail where visitors travel through tunnels, over trestles and stone-arch bridges.

Gillette was well-known in the early 20^th century for his acting, particularly his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes. He was the first actor to use the deerstalker cap and curved pipe that became staples of later Holmes portrayals. But Gillette was also an accomplished playwright, and his innovations in staging, lighting and even sound effects are indicative of the cleverness that he brought to the design of his castle.

The massive fieldstone castle at Gillette Castle State Park is open daily from Memorial Day through Columbus Day. Tours are available for a nominal fee. The grounds are open year-round. Connecticut state park employees are available to answer questions and operate a visitors' center and concessions. The park is located at 67 River Road in East Haddam, Connecticut.