Seldom
are Stephen King, High Tea, Teddy Roosevelt
and a Washington State castle mentioned in the
same breath, but at a beautiful castle in
Lakewood on American Lake, the four have
something in common.
Let me explain.
Thornewood Castle
Thornewood Castle is one of Washington
State's hidden surprises. The 27,000
square-foot castle built in 1908-1911 by
Chester A. Thorne is the only English
Gothic-Tudor-style castle on the West coast.
Thirty-five minutes from Sea-Tac airport, the
magnificent structure borders American Lake
and sits on 4-1/2 acres, including a half-acre
sunken English garden. The only way one would
even know about it is a gate on Thorne Lane;
it's not viewable by passersby.
It's a 54-room brick mansion complete with
28 bedrooms and 22 baths, eight of which are
Suites. Anna's Bridal Suite has cherry
furniture with a jacuzzi, while the
Presidential Suite is where President Teddy
Roosevelt spent two weeks. It features a lake
view and is very decadent. If I were to
reserve a Suite, however, I think it would be
the Grand View Suite with a tiled portico and
hot tub with a view of the lake. The
16th-century stained-glass windows add to the
charm.
The castle is a beautiful brick-exterior
beauty with ten-inch-thick concrete floors
covered with hardwood and 18-inch walls built
on a three-foot thick concrete foundation.
Many of the materials from a castle in
England, like the medieval stained glass
windows, were transported around Cape Horn. Be
sure to visit the castle link to view all the
glass.
Okay, you know it's a castle and you know
about the Presidential Suite, but what do
Teddy Roosevelt and Stephen King have to do
with it?
President Theodore Roosevelt
President Teddy Roosevelt stayed at the
castle for two weeks on a visit to our state.
The Presidential Suite is where he stayed. So
did President Taft. It features a four-post
British Empire King bed today. As with all the
Suites, pure luxury awaits in this historical
room.
Stephen King
Stephen King? How does he figure?
Stephen King's "Rose Red"
six-part mini-series became a part of
Thornewood Castle, one of many places
researched in 30 states and Canada, when his
scouting crew found it was the perfect place
to film his newest work since his tragic
accident. The castle is actually the
"star" of the show.
Prior to shooting, the crew came in and
restored the first floor back to the original
grandeur of 1911, which helped cinch the
decision to allow King's masterpiece filming
at the castle for owners Wayne and Deanna
Robinson. The movie crew even constructed a
"Rose Red" tower, a fountain and a
solarium for the property. The film props have
since been sold.
The mini-series is due to be televised in
early 2002. Stephen King's first work since
his tragic accident came alive at Thornewood
during filming, including an exploding car in
the drive, falling boulders, ghostly
characters, spiderwebs, fog and unexplained
real-life happenings. If you're a Stephen King
afficionado, then this is probably right up
your alley.
There are some unsettling things that
happened while filming the unusual theme.
Real-life actor David Dukes died of a
heart-attack the night before he was to play
his movie death scene. A producer had his lips
bitten off a week before shooting by a crew
member's dog! Enough of that scary stuff.
Thornewood was the site for two other past
movies: "Juliette - the Last
Warning" and "Precious Cargo."
There's a lot of room to film, as the 27,000
square-foot castle is akin to 15 typical
homes.
Bed and Breakfast/High Tea
Besides all the above, the castle is a
wonderful bed and breakfast. The owners of
this historical treat offer tours of the
castle in the form of an English four-course
high tea including pasties, sweets,
sandwiches, tea and pudding, or if you prefer,
lunch and a tour. There's also a castle
mystery series.
The tea menu is not to be outdone by the
Empress Hotel in Victoria, British Columbia,
Canada. Check out the link to read the menu.
Since the castle was built at the end of Queen
Victoria's reign, high tea seems quite
appropriate; she insisted on afternoon tea.
The link has all kinds of castle views,
from rooms to the exterior, plus interesting
movie restoration tales. I found it
educational to see how the restoration crew
duplicated the castle ceiling moldings in the
movie renovation. The restoration budget was
$500,000. Workers did most of the renovation
and restoration on site, but other movie parts
were built at the Sand Point Naval Air Station
on Lake Washington in Seattle. Some of the
film was filmed on a Seattle street.
If you're into tours and castles and
suspense with some excellent food and luxury
thrown in, or just a quiet back-in-time escape
from the world, this is the place. You won't
find phones in the rooms. There's a phone in
the common room and faxes are available. But
there are televisions/VCR's, robes,
chocolates, Seattle's Best coffee and a
radio/CD player in each room. Some rooms have
in-room refrigerators and microwaves. There's
also a private dock and beach.
Tacoma has some excellent eateries, too, if
you choose to eat out. I'm sure management
will be able to help you with that.
So when are you booking your trip?
Reservations
The reservation phone number is (253)
584-4393. Deanna Robinson or Leann Davis will
be happy to help you with your needs from 9
a.m. to 9 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. Or you
may converse by email at thornewood@mindspring.com.
The site with all the information on the
castle is at http://www.thornewoodcastle.com
- expect to spend a lot of time there. It's an
alluring bit of Washington State.
Copyright 2001 Jerri Brooker Photo
Copyright 2001 Thornewood Castle
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