Castles and Kings : Ontario Mansions and the People Who Lived in Them

by Ron Brown

176 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2001

About the author

Ron Brown is a geographer and travel author of more than twenty books, including Rails to the Atlantic, The Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore, and Back Roads of Ontario. He is past chair of the Writers' Union of Canada and leads tours of Ontario's unusual sights. He lives in Toronto.

Reviews

[Garth Mailman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Castles and Kings
Ron Brown

Delusions of grandeur or how the upper crust lives.Two common themes. Either the owner dies before he gets to enjoy his newfound luxury or upkeep and taxes force him to abandon his dream home.

In the case of Boldt Castle on Hart Island not covered here because it’s on the American Side of the Thousand Islands the owner of the Waldorf Astoria built a summer home for his wife who died before they could finish it and move in. Their chef invented the salad dressing there.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was reading it hoping to find places to go on tours/day-trips too. It isn't the book's fault, but only three or four of them were open for tours, and many were not "castle-like" at all. They were just big houses..... or not even, some were small, but just had historical significance.