Yes! Missouri Once Had A Grand Castle Which You Can Still Visit

No need to hop on a plane to see grand castles, there is one located in one of Missouri's State Parks and you can visit.

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Located in the Ha Ha Tonka State Park, the castle was built in 1905 by a businessman man and has a tragic past. All that is left of the castle are walls and some bricks around the ground. A wealthy businessman named Robert Snider fell in love with the views and property and decided that is where the castle should be located.

Construction was underway on the castle when Snider died in one of Missouri's first automobile accidents (according to the video below) and never got to see his dream home complete. His sons finished the project, which was not as grand as Robert wanted it to be. The sons turned the home into a hotel and in 1942 was burned to the ground due to a fire.

You can see in the pictures some of the dark, black stains on the stones from the fire. There is a water tower on the property that was not damaged in the 1942 fire but was later vandalized and burned in the '70s. All that you see now is what is left of one man's dream, but Snider was right about one thing. Just by looking at the photos, the views are amazing and breathtaking.

Surrounding the castle is the twelfth largest spring in Missouri, and there are several trails you can take to look and the water. Adding this to my bucket list as a must-see when I visit the Lake of the Ozarks, especially in the fall.

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