Coral Castle |
|
| 28655 S. Dixie Highway | |
| Homestead, FL 33033-1214 | |
| 305-248-6345 | |
|
Hours:
Monday -Thursday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday - Sunday 9 a.m.to 9 p.m. all year. | |
Edward Leedskalnin, a Latvian immigrant, built Coral Castle for the sweetheart back in his home country who spurned him at the wedding altar in 1912. Heartbroken, he emigrated to America and began this labor of jilted love for the girl he nicknamed "Sweet Sixteen." Most impressive was that Ed, who weighed a mere 100 pounds, worked alone on this project for nearly 30 years, using weights and leverage to move massive, multiple-ton blocks into place. A trained stonemason, he eventually moved more than 2 million pounds of coral rock to create this walled, open-air palace in Homestead, furnishing it with stone rocking chairs, coffee tables, a fountain, 9-ton gate, sundial, Polaris telescope and various sculptures of celestibal bodies. Originally name Rock Gate Park, the new owners renamed it Coral Castle after Ed's death and converted it into an attraction now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
