The entrance gates at Solomon’s Castle
Solomon’s Castle is on my must-see list of Florida’s quirkiest places. Like many others on that list, it’s off the beaten path and getting there requires a bit of effort. We were staying in Sarasota a couple of years back when the brochure caught our eye. Shall we go? Why not? Early the next morning we headed east and eventually found ourselves in Florida’s rural heartland in search of the “town” of Ona. It was a hot sunny day during the off-season. Few travelers on the road. GPS was patchy at times; we worried a bit about getting lost, but fortunately, we found our way there.
Hardee County, in which Ona and the “castle” are located, probably hasn’t changed much in the last century. Its 1930 population of 10,000 has almost tripled; but that’s nothing compared to Lee County , which is where we live. Here the population has gone from roughly 15,000 to 620,000 during that same time span. Few contrasts could better reflect the great divide between the pace of life in Gulf coast towns and cities and inland areas such as this.
Solomon’s Castle was the brainchild of Howard Solomon, who died in 2016 of heart troubles. He was 81. Howard spent many decades commuting from his 55-acre property to his St. Petersburg cabinet-making and boat-building business to earn the money that fueled his creative passions. Why base himself in a place like Ona? The land was cheap, and there was plenty of it.
Photography is not permitted within the “castle,” but YouTube has footage of tours Howard used to give to visitors (see link below). You’ll quickly see why the folks behind the Weird US publication called him the “Da Vinci of Debris”. For a great article on Howard, click here.
Resources:
YouTube video – 1 of 4 – Start here.
Google Images
Haven Magazine article: “Solomon’s Castle: A Visionary’s Legacy”
From here on down, I’ll let the pictures do the talking. Have a great weekend, everyone.
The approach to the Castle whose walls are covered with aluminum printing plates from a newspaper business
You can gaze at the turrets, towers, and stained glass windows as you await your turn for a guided tour. I kept expecting to see King Friday even though Mr. Rogers’ castle looks much different.
Pitchfork and quirky garden decor in the foreground
Fun idea for flower bed or small vegetable garden
Lots of massive staghorn ferns hang from the trees here
Yes, there’s a boat with a moat—complete with the occasional alligator. Howard built it all. Climb aboard, for here and beyond are the restaurant and gift shop.
Veranda seating overlooking the restaurant boat — it was still quite early so no diners yet.
More seating and a gift shop on the left. Note the fabulous live oak festooned with moss and ferns—a signature element in much of old Florida
Chips Off the Old Block 