Vacation Ideas: The Salisbury House In Des Moines, Iowa

nThe Salisbury House & Gardens is located at 4025 Tonawanda Drive, Des Moines, Iowa, U.S.A. It is a 42-room mansion in the likeness of the King’s House in Salisbury, England. The American Castle sits on a ten-acre estate of virgin woodlands.

Original owners of the house, Carl and Edith Weeks, had the Salisbury House built between the years of 1923 and 1928. Inside the Salisbury House there is the authentic 16th century English oak, English flint work, and rafters true to the time of Shakespeare. The Salisbury House contains the Weeks family original furnishings, collections of rare objects of art, paintings, tapestries, books and letters.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation has called the Salisbury House a “national treasure.” It was also featured on the national television series “America’s Castles,” on the A & E Cable Network and Home and Garden Television’s “Christmas Castles.”

Carl Weeks originally planned to spend no more than $150,000 on the construction of Salisbury House; however, by the time it was completed, he had become overwhelmed with imagination and enthusiasm for the project (structure and contents) to the point of spending $3 million dollars.

The Salisbury House became a dream to come for Carl Weeks. He and his wife Edith had traveled in Salisbury, England earlier and discovered an old building known as King’s House. They fell in love with the King’s House and decided to make it a model for their home in Des Moines. When they returned from England, Carl and Edith Weeks hired a local architect and began a long and loving journey of re-creating their home with all of the most prominent features of the King’s House. Their design included the three historical periods represented in the King’s House which were:nn• A flint and stone portion dating from Tudor times (1484-1603)n• An older gothic porch dating from the reign of King John (1167-1216)n• The most recent brick addition originates in the time of Charles I (1625-1649)

Upon completion of the home, there were four stories and 42 rooms that totals 22,500 square feet.

ToursnnJanuary and February, the Salisbury House is not open for public tours. March 1, through December 31 the House is open Tuesday through Friday, 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., and on Sunday 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. It is closed most major holidays. Admission for adults is $7, children ages 6- 12 are $3, seniors ages 65 and above is $6 and groups of 20 or more is $5. The tour schedule and prices are likely to change. If you add the Salisbury House to your vacation ideas, please call them in advance for the current schedule and admission prices at 515-274-1777.

Special OccasionsnnThe Salisbury House and Gardens is a unique and elegant setting for special occasions such as:nn• Receptionsn• Dinnersn• Meetingsn• And other special occasionsnnFor more information about reservations for your special occasion call 515-274-1777.

Source: The Salisbury Tour Guide in Des Moines, IowannImportant Disclaimer: The URL address in the resource box of this article is not associated with the Salisbury House or any of its employees. This article and the web site are offered as a resource for formulating vacation ideas.nnnnThis article is FREE to publish with the resource box.nn© 2007 Connie Limon All Rights Reservednn