Bishop Castle Frequently Asked Questions ~ F.A.Q.

• Q: When did the Bishop Castle begin?
• A: June of 1969. The year 2001 is the castle's 32nd year.
• Q: When is Jim going to finish the Castle?
• A: The Bishop Castle is an on-going work of art. It won't be finished until the morning that Jim doesn't wake up again. Then, and only then, will it be DONE.
• Q: How tall is the castle?
• A: Jim doesn't really measure, he just builds. The tallest tower is roughly 160 feet tall.
• Q: Does he really do everything himself?
• A: YES. The construction of the castle has been documented extensively from day one, and it is Jim, and only Jim, that has built the castle.
• Q: But aren't there parts that he didn't do?
• A: Yes there are. Keep in mind that when the project started, it was to be a one room family vacation cottege up in the mountains. ( see History of Bishop Castle ) For the first two years in what is now the room with the eiffel tower shaped fireplace, Jim's father Willard was helping to build also. Willard built the corner tower around the water tank up to the level of what is now the floor of the Grand Hall. You can easily see the difference in Willard's rockwork (small stones) and Jim's rockwork (large stones). It was at the point of the third floor in just that corner when Jim began calling it a castle and Willard wouldn't have anything to do with it anymore. The only other part of the castle that Jim didn't do himself are the stained glass windows. They've all been either gifts, donations, or fund-raisers, which he installs and then become permanant features of the castle.
• Q: Will his children continue to build the castle after Jim is gone?
• A: NO. That is like asking whether someone will continue to paint a canvass that Van Gogh left unfinished when he died. The Bishop Castle is a unique WORK OF ART.
• Q: Is building his castle all that Jim does?
• A: No. Jim works full time for a living down in Pueblo at the family's Bishop Ornamental Iron Shop. 719.564.5568 He is usually up at the castle and building on weekends and the occasional weekday, and he'll usually take 6 weeks or so off in the middle of summer, July & August, to spend as much time as he can while the weather supports masonry work.
• Q: Where does he get all of the rocks from?
• A: Jim has a permit with the National Forest Service called a non-invasive rock hauling permit. That means that he can take as much rock as he can without the use of heavy machinery, dynamite, and without building roads. So wherever there is a forestry road and a rockslide, he'll simply pull up his truck and start throwing rocks in the back. He figures that if they don't break, it's a good rock! It is extremely rare for Jim to show up in the morning with an empty truck.
• Q: Did Jim's father Willard start the Castle?
• A: No. Many people think that Willard started the castle because for years Willard would sit out in the courtyard drinking beer and smoking cigarettes and ask people what they thought of his castle! Willard was known as a wise-guy (to put it mildly) and very prone to pulling people's legs. Jim gets so worked up about being asked that because he's the one who did all the work.
• Q: What will happen to the castle when Jim dies?
• A: Jim will have left us a legacy that will last for a much longer time than any of us will be around. He's made provisions to make sure that the castle will always be open to the public free of charge.

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page last updated 2/5/01