BU Castle

The Boston University Castle (or BU Castle or simply "The Castle") is a Tudor Revival-style mansion owned by Boston University on Bay State Road. [ [http://www.bu.edu/castle/introduction/welcome/index.shtml Boston University | Office of Conference Services ] ] The school typically uses it for receptions or concerts, but also rents out The Castle to cater events and special occasions. The BU Castle achieved a small amount of fame in 2007 as a filming location for the Kevin Spacey movie 21. [ [http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/02/27/News/Actor.Producer.Spacey.Brings.Filming.To.Bu.Castle-2745647.shtml Actor, producer Spacey brings filming to BU Castle - News ] ]

Description

The building was cited by architectural historian Bainbridge Bunting in his Houses of Boston's Back Bay as displaying “the most convincing medieval effect of the area.”

According to Boston University, the building's founder, William Lindsey, would have been pleased by this description. Lindsey had derived his inspiration for the Castle from the great manor houses of Tudor England. "The imposing style of these medieval mansions held a special allure for Lindsey, who, besides being a successful businessman, was also a poet and playwright. His writings, such as The Severed Mantle: A romance of medieval Provence and The Red Wine of Roussillon, a blank-verse drama set in France during the Middle Ages, reveal the same fascination with the antique and the romantic that pervades the design of the Castle." [ [http://www.bu.edu/castle/introduction/history/index.shtml Boston University | Office of Conference Services ] ]

History

The Castle was originally built as a residence for William Lindsey (1858-1922), a prominent Boston businessman who made his fortune with a patented cartridge belt the British Army used during the Boer War. Plans were drawn up in 1904 and construction was completed in 1915 at a cost of more than $500,000. [ [http://www.bu.edu/castle/introduction/history/index.shtml Boston University | Office of Conference Services ] ]

Shortly after the building's completion, Lindsey's eldest daughter was married in the mansion, though she and her bridegroom would later be killed in their honeymoon aboard the ill-fated Lusitania, after the boat was torpedoed by a German submarine. The grief-stricken Lindsey later constructed the magnificent Leslie Lindsey Memorial Chapel in Emmanuel Church on Newbury Street in his daughter's memory.

In 1926, Oakes Ames purchased the Castle from Lindsey's window. He, University Trustee Dr. William E. Chenery and Chenery's wife donated the mansion to Boston University in 1939. From then until 1967, the Castle was used as the home of Boston University's presidents.

BU Pub

In the basement of the BU Castle is the BU Pub, an English-style pub serving drinks and sandwiches. The Castle is the only Boston University-operated drinking establishment on campus. It is open only to faculty, staff, alumni, students, and invited guests, and is closed on weekends. [ [http://www.bu.edu/phpbin/dining/location.php?l=bupub BU | Dining Services | Retail Dining | BU Club (Pub) ] ] The Pub sometimes has live music on Thursdays, with performances mostly from BU students. A popular house activity is the Quest, in which the participant must try all 60 types of beer sold. [ [http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2006/04/06/News/Bu.Pub.Still.A.Popular.Secret.After.Decades.On.Campus-1799257.shtml BU Pub still a popular secret after decades on campus - News ] ]

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