Craigdarroch Castle

Craigdarroch Castle

Craigdarroch Castle in Victoria is an imposing Victorian mansion completed in 1890 for Robert and Joan Dunsmuir, Scottish immigrants who made their fortune from Vancouver Island coal.

Robert Dunsmuir died in 1889, just months before his majestic Craigdarroch Castle was completed. Although he arrived on Vancouver Island a poor coal miner, he built an empire and became the wealthiest and most influential man in British Columbia.

The fortune Dunsmuir amassed is reflected in every piece of the finest wood, stone and glass meticulously tooled to create Craigdarroch Castle, now a national historic museum featuring an extensive collection of stained and lead glass windows, magnificent woodwork, Victorian furnishings and decorative arts.

To tour the Castle, you can park on the Castle lot or on the street where indicated. You enter through the old coach entrance, pay your admission fee, clean your shoes and are then provided with a floor map, family history and introduction as to how to proceed. Tours are self-guided, so you can stop where you want. It should take you 45 minutes to an hour to tour through the Castle.

 Victoria's legendary landmark. Experience the lifestyles of the rich & powerful at the end of the 19th century. Completed in 1890, the Castle is now a historic house museum.

Lavish Victorian era furnishings & decor, exquisite stained glass & detailed woodwork carved by artisans of days gone by... These all combine to create a warm & expansive entertainment experience.

When you're finished, take time to browse the Gift Shop & relax in the newly restored (2010) grounds before moving on to your next destination.

Open daily for self-guided tours.

1050 Joan Cres, Victoria, 
British Columbia, V8S 3L5

Phone250-592-5323

Fax250-592-1099

Website:http://www.thecastle.ca

Email: info@thecastle.ca

Kimberly Crest House and Gardens

Kimberly Crest House & Gardens

Kimberly Crest House and Gardens is a French château-style Victorian mansion located in Redlands, California. The property is a registered California Historical Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Kimberly-Shirk Association is dedicated to the preservation of Kimberly Crest House & Gardens to:
• Share the aesthetic experience of the estate;

• Educate visitors about the history and significance of the events, people, objects and culture of Kimberly Crest;

 • Inspire in others the vision and leadership in education, philanthropy, community and human values exemplified by Mary Kimberly Shirk. 

The 7,000 square foot, three-story chateau sits on a six and one quarter acre estate two miles south of downtown Redlands, at 1325 Prospect Drive, and is enjoyed by more than 11,000 visitors annually.

Originally built by Mrs. Cornelia A. Hill, a widow from New York State, the home was purchased by J. Alfred Kimberly (a co-founder of the Kimberly-Clark Corporation) and Helen Cheney Kimberly in 1905. Their widowed daughter, Mary Kimberly Shirk, lived in the home from 1920 until her death in 1979.

Kimberly Krest House and Gardens

The house's unique features include a French revival parlor complete with gilt furniture and silk damask wall coverings. Terraced Italian gardens, orange groves and ponds surround this historic landmark home. The lily ponds feature radiant Koi; vivid red, pink and yellow lilies against deep green majestic lotus blossoms; and papyrus. In 1998, KSA was made an honorary member of the Inland Koi Society who maintains the lily ponds at Kimberly Crest.

In 1963 there was a community effort to raise money to purchase Prospect Park (a 39 acre botanical park east and adjacent to Kimberly Crest) for the City of Redlands. To motivate support for this project, Mrs. Shirk promised to give her home to the "people of Redlands," if the needed money was raised. The park was acquired in 1968. The following year the Kimberly-Shirk Association, a non-profit corporation was formed. In her will, Mrs. Shirk left the house to the Association for the people of Redlands.

How do I Decorate a House in a Victorian Style?

Victorian Style Interior Decor

Victorian decor reflects the tastes and styles of this era. According to Creative Home Decorating Room by Room, the Victorian period "was an era of ornate and excessive decoration in all things," which was preceded and followed by simpler times.

In addition to the ornate, lighter Victorian decor often favored by bed and breakfasts, the Victorian era also had a more masculine side, and often used dark furniture and animal trophy accessories throughout the home.

If you own a Victorian home and are selling your property, adding a bit of Victorian flair may enhance and accentuate the historic value of your home. San Francisco in particular is home to several thriving Victorian home districts, such as Pacific Heights and the Western Addition.

1

Purchase antiques from the Victorian era. Search local antique shops, particularly any stores that may specialize in Victorian antiques. Antique shops can be pricey, so also look at thrift stores, which may offer additional antiques for lower prices.

2

Replace plain light fixtures with ornate Victorian pieces. Look for chandeliers, beaded lampshades, and cast iron lanterns. For a truly authentic feel, use Victorian candle holders and candleabras to provide dim lighting in your formal dining or living room.

3

Replace drapes and blinds with Victorian window treatments. The Victorian era tended to use lush, ornate fabrics such as velvet and silk, with rich color tones. As noted at From Times Past, one telltale sign of a Victorian era home is stained glass windows, which can be purchased at home improvement stores or found in antique shops. (See Reference 4)

4

Accessorize with decorative vases and bold floral arrangements, animal trophies, needlepoint pillowcases, Grecian busts and vases, and a wide variety of knick-knacks and miniatures. As noted at The New Homemaker, you may also want to invest in display cases and box-style frames to prevent breaking and minimize dusting.

5

Hang Victorian wall art, such as antique mirrors, needlework, portraits and nature pieces. Use ornate frames to accentuate artwork and portraits.

Gothic Revival Style 1830 - 1860

Gothic Revival Style

The Gothic Revival style is part of the mid-19th century picturesque and romantic movement in architecture, reflecting the public’s taste for buildings inspired by medieval design. This was a real departure from the previously popular styles that drew inspiration from the classical forms of ancient Greece and Rome. While distinctly different, both the Gothic Revival style and the Greek Revival style looked to the past, and both remained popular throughout the mid 19th century. The Gothic Revival style in America was advanced by architects Alexander Jackson Davis and especially Andrew Jackson Downing, authors of influential house plan books, Rural Residences (1837), Cottage Residences (1842), and The Architecture of Country Houses (1850). This style was promoted as an appropriate design for rural settings, with its complex and irregular shapes and forms fitting well into the natural landscape. Thus, the Gothic Revival style was often chosen for country homes and houses in rural or small town settings.

The Gothic Revival style was also popular for churches, where high style elements such as castle-like towers, parapets, and tracery windows were common, as well as the pointed Gothic arched windows and entries. The Carpenter Gothic style is a distinctive variation of the Gothic Revival style featuring vertical board and batten wooden siding, pointed arches and incised wooden trim. The name comes from the extensive use of decorative wood elements on the exterior. While some examples remain, the pure Carpenter Gothic style is not well represented in Pennsylvania. 

The most commonly identifiable feature of the Gothic Revival style is the pointed arch, used for windows, doors, and decorative elements like porches, dormers, or roof gables. Other characteristic details include steeply pitched roofs and front facing gables with delicate wooden trim called vergeboards or bargeboards. This distinctive incised wooden trim is often referred to as “gingerbread” and is the feature most associated with this style. Gothic Revival style buildings often have porches with decorative turned posts or slender columns, with flattened arches or side brackets connecting the posts. Gothic Revival style churches may have not just pointed arch windows and porticos, but often feature a Norman castle-like tower with a crenellated parapet or a high spire.

Many examples of Gothic Revival buildings of both high style and more vernacular character can be found across the state. The high style buildings, mansions, churches, prisons and schools sometimes offer ornate architectural details. The more common vernacular buildings may have only a few Gothic details, usually pointed arch windows and a front facing gable with wooden trim. Gothic Revival details may also be found in urban settings on rowhouses or duplexes. Later in the 19th century, Gothic Revival details were mixed with elements of other Victorian era styles to become a style known as the Victorian Gothic. In the early 20th century, a distinct variation of the Gothic Revival style, known as the Collegiate Gothic style, developed primarily for educational buildings. These derivative forms of the Gothic Revival style are more fully discussed elsewhere in this field guide.

Victorian Interiors

Examples of Victorian interiors.

Victorian Interior

Victorian Interior 1

Images of Victorian houses

Images and photos of the best Victorian houses.
Victorian home designs draw from a variety of styles from Gothic to Italianate. Laden with turrets, porches, and bays and embellished with gingerbread, shingles, and fanciful windows, Victorian home plans are like snowflakes: no two are alike.

Victorian house plans typically feature at least two stories with, with steep complex rooflines. Eaves and gable ends may boast decorative brackets and delicate gingerbread ornamentation.
Thanks to their irregular massing, Victorian floor plans tend to be free-form and rambling. Victorian sub-styles include Gothic Revival, Queen Anne or Eastlake, Stick style, Second Empire, and Shingle style.

Victorian Houses, Southfield, Hessle

Victorian house on High St near Madison

Victorian Children In Coal Mines

Dave's Victorian House Site