Boston – Boston University: The Castle

Boston – Boston University: The Castle

Image by wallyg
"The Castle", a graceful, vine-covered Tudor revival mansion located on the West end of Bay State Road, is one of the older buildings on the Boston University campus, and one with an interesting, if not exactly accurate, history. According to lore, the castle was built by millionaire William Lindsay for his daughter Leslie Lindsey Mason as her wedding gift. However, she was killed when her ship, the RMS Lusitania, was torpedoed and sunk by German submarines on May 7, 1915. In fact the building was commissioned by William Lindsay for his own use in 1905, long before his daughter’s honeymoon on the Lusitania. In 1939, the University acquired the property by agreement with the city to repay all back taxes owed; these funds were raised through donations from, among others, Dr. William Chenery, a University Trustee. It served as the residence of the University president until 1967, when President Christ-Janer found it too large for his needs as a residence and turned it to other uses. It is now a conference space, considered to be one of the most elegant wedding locations in Boston, accomodating up to 92 people for a seated dinner, and up to 125 for a standing reception. Underneath the Castle is the BU Pub, the only BU-operated drinking establishment on campus.

In 2007 "The Castle" served has been chosen as the set for scenes in a Kevin Spacey movie based on Ben Mezrich’s 2003 book Bringing Down the House, about six MIT students who learned to count cards in Blackjack and won millions at Las Vegas casinos.