Fairhope Storybook Castles
Castle Walk Story
In the beginning:
When the daily WSB began in 2013, Charlene thought the students would enjoy walking in front of the unique castles that were right on the path to the school. So, she made this request to her friends, the Moshers, who immediately agreed to the proposal as they are always up for fun adventures.
It was decided the WSB would walk by the castles every Friday morning. One Friday morning we found a baggie with a WSB vest inside along with a note signed from the troll that reportedly lives under the bridge. Obviously, the vest had accidentally been dropped by one of the WSB staff. This event started the ever-expanding adventures the WSB experiences when we enter the magical grounds of the Shire Community.
Over time:
Gradually, more magical creatures began to appear on these Friday strolls by the Castles. Pagan has tons of costumes from her days of directing musical theater events via Creative Outlet Dance Center. Dean decided to start taking photos of each walk and Pagan would script and post on the castle FB page. Not to be outdone, Pagan’s sister, Susan Megrez began to dress up and wear the snazzy hats that have made her Fairhope’s most fun librarian. And then Peek-A Boo the delightful unicorn began to appear weekly. Peek-A Book would show up in all kinds of different outfits and in unique locations-prompting the kids to shout his name whenever first sighted. Peek-A-Boo quickly became loved by the children.
Then longtime friends of the Sheldons & Moshers -Glenn & Sally Boom purchased the old block house adjacent to the Moshers. The Boom’s and Dean collaborated on the design what has become Boom Hobbit Castle and the Gate House which fit in beautifully with the Storybook Castle theme. Before long, Boom castle residents Sally & Glenn Boom joined the costume attired Shire Community. Often times Queen Sally greets the WSB with Glenn earning the title of the best ever Gandalf.
The evolution: The newest addition is Lady Paris and her a cool tuxedo cat, Kyra Anne Shire. Lady Paris’s well-developed artistic nature, magnificent collection of “faires”, and love for creating fairy scenes has elevated the Castle Walks to a whole new magical level.
When the daily WSB began in 2013, Charlene thought the students would enjoy walking in front of the unique castles that were right on the path to the school. So, she made this request to her friends, the Moshers, who immediately agreed to the proposal as they are always up for fun adventures.
It was decided the WSB would walk by the castles every Friday morning. One Friday morning we found a baggie with a WSB vest inside along with a note signed from the troll that reportedly lives under the bridge. Obviously, the vest had accidentally been dropped by one of the WSB staff. This event started the ever-expanding adventures the WSB experiences when we enter the magical grounds of the Shire Community.
Over time:
Gradually, more magical creatures began to appear on these Friday strolls by the Castles. Pagan has tons of costumes from her days of directing musical theater events via Creative Outlet Dance Center. Dean decided to start taking photos of each walk and Pagan would script and post on the castle FB page. Not to be outdone, Pagan’s sister, Susan Megrez began to dress up and wear the snazzy hats that have made her Fairhope’s most fun librarian. And then Peek-A Boo the delightful unicorn began to appear weekly. Peek-A Book would show up in all kinds of different outfits and in unique locations-prompting the kids to shout his name whenever first sighted. Peek-A-Boo quickly became loved by the children.
Then longtime friends of the Sheldons & Moshers -Glenn & Sally Boom purchased the old block house adjacent to the Moshers. The Boom’s and Dean collaborated on the design what has become Boom Hobbit Castle and the Gate House which fit in beautifully with the Storybook Castle theme. Before long, Boom castle residents Sally & Glenn Boom joined the costume attired Shire Community. Often times Queen Sally greets the WSB with Glenn earning the title of the best ever Gandalf.
The evolution: The newest addition is Lady Paris and her a cool tuxedo cat, Kyra Anne Shire. Lady Paris’s well-developed artistic nature, magnificent collection of “faires”, and love for creating fairy scenes has elevated the Castle Walks to a whole new magical level.
Sheldon Castle
The Sheldon’s didn’t have the funds for shingles, so Craig collected and used whatever was left over from construction sites. He worked as a carpenter and construction foreman for most of his professional life.
Annie Lowrie was Craig’s wife for 57 years. He gave her the nickname of “Butch” early on and this is the name everyone in Fairhope called her. The stone comes out of Mobile Bay. That is why you can see barnacle and oyster spats on them. The Chinese Symbol over the front door means ALL WHO ENTER WILL HAVE A LONG LIFE. To get to the third floor you climb a steep ladder on the wall and go through a hatch in the floor. Originally the tower didn’t have a roof. Mr. & Mrs. Sheldon on many a beautiful night slept up there under the stars. They signed their letters “Your Star Gazer.” |
Mosher Castle
Mosher Castle is hand built with incredible attention to detail by artist Dean Mosher, it serves as both home and studio for Dean and his wife, Pagan. It began when an old run down structure was purchased in 1983. It now has the largest tower an ornate bridge, ponds and Hendrix the dragon on a turret looking over Excalibur, drawbridge and moat.
Many of the artistic features of Sheldon Castle inspired the building of Mosher Castle. Both the exterior and the interior are largely made of local materials. The stone facing is indigenous to the area, as is the underlying wall tile. Even interior trim is from trees felled on the site. In amongst the stones are pieces of glass and pottery as well as objects from around the world, including the Great Wall of China and the Berlin Wall.
The artist has been building his studio castle home for 40 years while raising his family and pursuing his art. Much of Dean’s construction knowledge was acquired working with his late father-in-law, Craig Sheldon, master carpenter, mason, and woodcarver. Dean’s wife Pagan, is a retired professional dancer, teacher, and studio owner. They married in 1978. She now runs their Storybook Castle Airbnb and enjoys managing the gardens.
All day every day tourists, locals, families and friends are welcome to walk down the front drive and the front yards. Signs are posted with guidelines we ask guests to follow.
The Storybook Castles are a wonderful setting for photo shoots for that special occasion. Tours for large groups are also available.
Dean Mosher (castle designer and builder) is an internationally known historical artist with paintings in National Parks, major universities and the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum on the Mall in D.C. He is known for his fascinating lectures that bring history to life. He can be booked for lectures locally and nationally.
For more info on both Mosher & Sheldon Castles visit the websites listed below or contact Pagan Mosher
456 Oak Ave
Fairhope, Al. 36532-2400
251-928-4347
[email protected]
Websites:
fairhopecastle.com
https://www.facebook.com/moshercastle
deanmosher.com
https://airbnb.com/h/storybookcastle
Many of the artistic features of Sheldon Castle inspired the building of Mosher Castle. Both the exterior and the interior are largely made of local materials. The stone facing is indigenous to the area, as is the underlying wall tile. Even interior trim is from trees felled on the site. In amongst the stones are pieces of glass and pottery as well as objects from around the world, including the Great Wall of China and the Berlin Wall.
The artist has been building his studio castle home for 40 years while raising his family and pursuing his art. Much of Dean’s construction knowledge was acquired working with his late father-in-law, Craig Sheldon, master carpenter, mason, and woodcarver. Dean’s wife Pagan, is a retired professional dancer, teacher, and studio owner. They married in 1978. She now runs their Storybook Castle Airbnb and enjoys managing the gardens.
All day every day tourists, locals, families and friends are welcome to walk down the front drive and the front yards. Signs are posted with guidelines we ask guests to follow.
The Storybook Castles are a wonderful setting for photo shoots for that special occasion. Tours for large groups are also available.
Dean Mosher (castle designer and builder) is an internationally known historical artist with paintings in National Parks, major universities and the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum on the Mall in D.C. He is known for his fascinating lectures that bring history to life. He can be booked for lectures locally and nationally.
For more info on both Mosher & Sheldon Castles visit the websites listed below or contact Pagan Mosher
456 Oak Ave
Fairhope, Al. 36532-2400
251-928-4347
[email protected]
Websites:
fairhopecastle.com
https://www.facebook.com/moshercastle
deanmosher.com
https://airbnb.com/h/storybookcastle
Boom Hobbit Castle
Boom Hobbit Castle residents: the Booms
Native Californians, Glenn and Sally Boom, settled in Montrose in 1978 after many years of living across the country while Glenn worked for Shell Oil Company.
Queen Sally, as we like to call her, traveled the country as an artist, designer, consultant, and teacher specializing in all types of needlework while raising 4 children. She is very active in Shire daily life and the weekly Castle Walks.
Long time friends of the Sheldons & Moshers- Glenn & Sally Boom purchased the old block house adjacent to the Moshers with a promise from Dean to design their castle and to do much of the exterior trim and stone work himself to continue the Storybook Castle theme.
Boom’s Hobbit Castle was completed and the Booms moved in the summer of 2020. The Boom’s daughter Judy Hale is now living in the Gate House (the Castle house next to the Boom Hobbit Castle)
Native Californians, Glenn and Sally Boom, settled in Montrose in 1978 after many years of living across the country while Glenn worked for Shell Oil Company.
Queen Sally, as we like to call her, traveled the country as an artist, designer, consultant, and teacher specializing in all types of needlework while raising 4 children. She is very active in Shire daily life and the weekly Castle Walks.
Long time friends of the Sheldons & Moshers- Glenn & Sally Boom purchased the old block house adjacent to the Moshers with a promise from Dean to design their castle and to do much of the exterior trim and stone work himself to continue the Storybook Castle theme.
Boom’s Hobbit Castle was completed and the Booms moved in the summer of 2020. The Boom’s daughter Judy Hale is now living in the Gate House (the Castle house next to the Boom Hobbit Castle)
Fairies
Castle artist studio /keeper of the fairies- Paris Ladner
Our Lady Paris (Ladner) grew up in Biloxi, Miss., where her family owned the Fisherman’s Wharf, a popular restaurant for 13 years. When Hurricane Camille destroyed it and her family home, she and her mother moved to New York and lived for two years with friends who were show business people and artists. Paris studied piano with a Juilliard instructor and absorbed the culture of Manhattan, the Broadway plays, the museums, the ethnic restaurants, and concerts. Her mother worked as a talent scout, so Paris was exposed to a wide variety of entertainers who would often spend the weekends with them.
Paris and her mother rebuilt the restaurant in Biloxi and Paris attended high school while she pursued riding and jumping horses, accompanying the concert choir on piano, and playing concertos with the orchestra. After high school, Paris studied music at Ole Miss and the University of Southern Mississippi until moving to Southern California where she got her B.A. Degree and started working at Warner Brothers Studios and later at Twentieth Century Fox as a set assistant. She married, and she and her husband started a successful company which they owned for over 30 years. They have 3 sons. In 2015, now single she moved to Ocean Springs, Miss and bought a home there. She discovered beautiful Fairhope in 2020, sold her home and moved to Oak Avenue, where she loves being a part of the Shire village. Paris has enjoyed sharing her various fairy scenes with the Walking School Bus and has a long list of other art projects she plans to start now that she is retired.
Fairy Story of Fairhope Castles:
Here is the interesting history of Lady Paris’s unique little Flower Fairies collection that she uses to make her charming Fairy Scenes for the WSB Castle Walks. She uses the fairies that were made from the drawings of Cicely Mary Barker, a self-taught painter from London, England. Cicely Mary Barker was born in 1895 and the 1923 publication of her series of Flower Fairies books brought her international acclaim. Children and adults alike have since enjoyed her charming paintings and accompanying poems. Her fairy paintings resulted in the manufacture of tiny replicas made of resin that were hand painted and sold for many years, but alas, they are no longer produced anywhere so that each fairy is now a true collector’s item. Lady Paris has been collecting the 168 different fairies (and her duplicate collection numbers over 300 fairies) since the early 1990’s as well as accessories so she could make scenes to entertain her family, friends, and herself during many summers spent in the mossy glen in the woods of her home in Maine. She is delighted to share them with the wee folk of Fairhope, as well as anyone else who sees them, hopefully bringing a smile to their faces, a spark of imagination to their minds, and magic to their lives.
Our Lady Paris (Ladner) grew up in Biloxi, Miss., where her family owned the Fisherman’s Wharf, a popular restaurant for 13 years. When Hurricane Camille destroyed it and her family home, she and her mother moved to New York and lived for two years with friends who were show business people and artists. Paris studied piano with a Juilliard instructor and absorbed the culture of Manhattan, the Broadway plays, the museums, the ethnic restaurants, and concerts. Her mother worked as a talent scout, so Paris was exposed to a wide variety of entertainers who would often spend the weekends with them.
Paris and her mother rebuilt the restaurant in Biloxi and Paris attended high school while she pursued riding and jumping horses, accompanying the concert choir on piano, and playing concertos with the orchestra. After high school, Paris studied music at Ole Miss and the University of Southern Mississippi until moving to Southern California where she got her B.A. Degree and started working at Warner Brothers Studios and later at Twentieth Century Fox as a set assistant. She married, and she and her husband started a successful company which they owned for over 30 years. They have 3 sons. In 2015, now single she moved to Ocean Springs, Miss and bought a home there. She discovered beautiful Fairhope in 2020, sold her home and moved to Oak Avenue, where she loves being a part of the Shire village. Paris has enjoyed sharing her various fairy scenes with the Walking School Bus and has a long list of other art projects she plans to start now that she is retired.
Fairy Story of Fairhope Castles:
Here is the interesting history of Lady Paris’s unique little Flower Fairies collection that she uses to make her charming Fairy Scenes for the WSB Castle Walks. She uses the fairies that were made from the drawings of Cicely Mary Barker, a self-taught painter from London, England. Cicely Mary Barker was born in 1895 and the 1923 publication of her series of Flower Fairies books brought her international acclaim. Children and adults alike have since enjoyed her charming paintings and accompanying poems. Her fairy paintings resulted in the manufacture of tiny replicas made of resin that were hand painted and sold for many years, but alas, they are no longer produced anywhere so that each fairy is now a true collector’s item. Lady Paris has been collecting the 168 different fairies (and her duplicate collection numbers over 300 fairies) since the early 1990’s as well as accessories so she could make scenes to entertain her family, friends, and herself during many summers spent in the mossy glen in the woods of her home in Maine. She is delighted to share them with the wee folk of Fairhope, as well as anyone else who sees them, hopefully bringing a smile to their faces, a spark of imagination to their minds, and magic to their lives.