Hammond Castle Trip Review

Name: Hammond Castle
Location: Gloucester, Massachusetts
Website: http://www.hammondcastle.org
Length of stay: 1 1/2 hours

This a great look at a castle someone built on the side of the ocean in Gloucester, Massachusetts. It was built by John Jays Hammond, Jr. from 1926-1929. He was in inventor and build this castle. There is a collection of pictures at the museum about it being built. It was something that stood out even then. The castle was turned into a place you could tour after his death. You have a self guided tour of the inside and outside. This is not handicap accessible because of the narrow stairs and no where for elevators.

The outside has a great many things to look at. We loved that every where you loved there was something new to see. There were several paths to take around the building. Outside you can see the drawbridge, bell tower and where John Hays Hammond jr burial site is.

After you leave the opening it is fun to walk through the area leading up the main hall. The girls liked all the many different areas and items to see. They varied in area and where they were located. It is fun to see the different items they put in there.

Great Hall has some great banners hanging from the ceiling and it gives you a good idea of how high the ceiling is. There is a old organ in the hall as well. A nice big fireplace and several other different collections of objects. We played I Spy in the room and it was tons of fun.

Off of the great hall is the Side Chapel and a dinner room. We saw different types of chairs and dishes in the room. You got to see different place setting as well.

There are two different guest rooms in the house. One is set up for medieval theme and American theme. They were decorated and from the information even had straw beds for the guests to sleep on.

The indoor courtyard and pool were very neat to look at. There was different collections of art work on the walls and the pool was great to look at from different angles around the house and from different rooms.

Below was a kitchen that feed the house. You could see 1920s appliances and some of the cook books were displayed.

In the servants quarters we only got to see one more because the rest was under repairs from damage from the winter. A big part of the love that the girls had with the place was the stairs up to the servants quarters. They must have gone up and down those stairs a few things.

Collection of various antiques and art work through the house. You can also see the library where Mr Hammond has his books. there is also a room for his inventions that he made. No pictures were taken in these rooms. I guess I just forgot. We were having fun looking at objects and trying to decide what they were used for.

This was a great trip for the girls. It was hard to keep our hands to our selves and not touch things but it was also a learning experience. We shall be going back again to see what different things we can learn on another trip.

Cassie – 3Dinosaurs.com