Mystery Castle

Mystery Castle 
After learning he had tuberculosis,  Boyce Luther Gulley moved from Seattle, Washington, to the Phoenix area without telling his small family. He began building the house from materials that he either found or purchased for a very low price in the1930s.
Making a type of cement from a mixture of mortar, cement, calcium, and goat milk; Gulley built the sprawling 18-room, three story castle from a wide range of materials—stone, adobe, automobile parts, salvaged rail tracks from a mine, telephone poles, etc.
The castle has a chapel, a bar, and a room named purgatory. Parts of the castle still remain unfinished, and its electricity and plumbing weren't added until sometime later. 
Boyce Gulley died in 1945 from cancer rather than the tuberculosis that had brought him to Arizona; Mary Lou and her mother were notified by his attorney that they had inherited the property. Shortly afterward, the mother and daughter moved in.
A Life Magazine, January 26th, 1948 cover story used the headline, "Life Visits a Mystery Castle: A Young Girl Rules Over the Strange Secrets of a Fairy Tale Dream House in the Arizona Desert."
The magazines cover photograph featured Mary Lou posing atop the cantilever staircase leading to the roof of the house. During that same year, Mary Lou and her mother began offering tours of the home.

The Castle is Awe Inspiring!

Half a wagon makes up the Bar. Above the bar is the patio. Glass tiles were used in the patio to allow light down into the area below. 

The Chapel has a pump organ and sacred snakes. Weddings were preformed there.

The Crocodile guarded the Biggest Mystery. Mr. Gulley, in his will, stated that if his daughter remained in the castle for a specific amount of time, she could open the trap door and reveal what her father had left her. The time frame was met, and Life Magazine was there on the date it was opened. Inside the nine foot deep time capsule, among other things, were photos of the builder,  two five hundred dollar bills, and a letter his daughter had written him when she was a child . 

The architecture is fascinating! Although very rough and primitive, the craftsmanship is beautiful and inspiring. 

The windows where looking out from the breakfast area in the kitchen.
The room above was the room her father had built for Mary Lou.
Although the steps throughout the castle are uneven, every bit of the structure is functional. 

The Saguaro Room was built around this Saguaro skeleton.
The room is a guest room. It also has a bed that can roll out of rails.
Some of the smaller upper widows where made from the
reused rims from the car he drove. 

Every bit of the structure, is so eclectic and mind boggling. 

At the top of this photo you can see part of the unfinished castle.
Mr Gulley had no master plan. He did manage to build and complete
much of the 18 room, three story castle before his death.

The amount of detail in the building process is wonderful.
There is a accurate compass built into the patio floor, a tiny window that takes
views downtown Phoenix, but at the time took in all of Phoenix.
A view of Lions Head rock on the resounding mountains fro the patio lends reassuring to
Mr Gulleys love for cats. 

The kitchen is charming and practical. A wash tub was converted
into a stove vent.

He always thought for the future. Conduit was built in for future electricity
was put in place. This drain is in the kitchen floor, so it could be washed down. 

Every bit of the caste was put together with great thought.
I recommend that everyone take the opportunity and walk through
the Mystery Castle. It was wonderful!