By Erika Riggs, Zillow
Zillow
Norumbega Castle in Camden, Maine
Norumbega Castle, Camden, Maine
For sale: $1,790,000
As explorers crisscrossed the oceans in search of The New World, facts of their journeys sometimes mixed with fiction. Some searched for the lost city of Atlantis. Spain’s Juan Ponce de Leon went after the Fountain of Youth. France’s Jean Allefonsce spoke of Norumbega as a large, rich native city alongside the banks of an enormous river in what is today the state of Maine.
Explorers were never able to find that fantasy city, but the legend never died. In 1886, Bangor, Maine, embraced the legend of Norumbega, when eccentric inventor Joseph Stearns built his tribute to the fabled city: An enormous stone castle sitting on the coast of Camden.
Camden Real Estate Company
Norumbega Castle circa 1800s.
Originally from Maine, Stearns became a millionaire with his invention of the duplex telegraphy, which he sold to Western Union.
When Stearns decided to build the Norumbega Castle, he spent a year visiting European castles for inspiration. He hired New York architect Arthur Bates Jennings to incorporate his favorite castle features.
Situated on nearly four acres, Norumbega is 10,330-square-feet and has 12 bedrooms and 13.5 bathrooms. Stunning period woodwork, ornate stone fireplaces and views of the bay are featured prominently throughout the house.
Listing agent Scott Horty of the Camden Real Estate Company explained his favorite details of the home:
“[It] has the coolest stair landing complete with a fireplace and built-in window seats and stunning woodwork,” he said.
Zillow
Bookcases wrap around the top of the landing.
And in case you’ve ever wanted to sleep like royalty, the main turret is a bedroom.
Converted into an inn in 1984, the home is still available as a single-family property. Described as the “jewel of the Maine coast,” Camden is a historic hamlet nestled between mountains and ocean.
According to Zillow’s mortgage affordability calculator, the estimated monthly payment for the Norumbega Castle would be $6,602 a month, assuming a 20 percent down payment on a 30-year-fixed mortgage rate.
In addition, the carriage house that once belonged to the Norumbega Castle is also for sale.
In the 1970s, the carriage house was split from the property as a separate, single-family residence. Like the castle, the carriage house is listed on the Camden real estate market, and features Victorian-era design.
Priced at $4.75 million, the Norumbega carriage house has had a complete renovation.
Zillow
The Norumbega carriage house is separately listed.
See more photos of the castle and more photos of the carriage house.
Zillow’s site is filled with information on homes for sale and apartments for rent, plus data on more than 100 million homes in the U.S., so lots of homes catch our eye.