Friends of the Castle

For the first time in the 31 year history of the Bishop Castle, jim allowed a volunteer crew in the summer of 1999 to build a large stone retaining wall along the walkway between the courtyard and the driveway. The experiement was a success! Jim's attitude was that as long as he got the full credit for building the castle itself, and didn't feel like he had to look over our shoulders, these Friends of the Castle could help build the other features of the castle grounds. This will eventually include the Gate-House and the Wall around the property, in addition to various landscaping and beautification projects.

This year, the spring/summer of 2002, beginning weekends when the snow has finished melting and the weather is warm enough to mix concrete, our resident volunteer coordinator will be enlisting the help of whomever is interested in physically contributing to the lasting legacy of the Bishop Castle. Projects on deck this summer include the completion of the stone retaining wall, a backfilling of the space behind the wall, the creation of a castle looking picnic pavillion on top of the backfill, and the construction of a stone facade on the public outhouse to make it look like another little castle!

If you are interested in becoming a Friend of the Castle volunteer, please contact us and we will be more than happy to fill you in on current details and times. Camping is available to those interested in more than a day or two. In addition to the respect and admiration of Jim Bishop himself, after 24 hours of labour (sounds painful!) you will be entitled to a Bishop Castle appreciation package including a castle t-shirt, patch, the postcards of your choice, and the knowledge that you've contributed to history!

The Spring/Summer season of 2002 will be full of numerous Friends projects. There are plans to build a battlement wall on the west side of the courtyard, in addition to finishing the picnic pavilion wall and backfilling of that area in preperation for the castle shaped pavillion.

Contact us at 719.485.3040 seven days a week mid-April - October

Or E.Mail us at: dvbishop@comcast.net

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page last updated 3.27.02