How Big and Where is the Biggest House in Massachusetts?
Editor's note: This article was written by a Townsquare Media Northern New England contributor and may contain the individual's views, opinions or personal experiences.
Don't be confused by the size of this single-family home.
Yes, it's over 54,000 square feet of living space including indoors and outdoors, but the original owner was an expansionist. One of the Central Pacific Railroad founders, Mark Hopkins, built the house in 1887 for his wife Mary, according to The Berkshire Eagle.
The Searles Castle at 389 Main Street, Great Barrington, Massachusetts, has 14 bedrooms, 15 bathrooms, and over 40,000 square feet of interior living space as noted by Zillow.com. It's the largest single-residence home in Massachusetts, according to Angi.com.
Named after the second husband of Mary Hopkins, Edward Searles, the castle's interior was designed by Searles himself, who was a famous decorator in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
The home was last purchased in July of 2021 for $3,250,000 by famous American artist Hunt Slonem of Brooklyn, New York. Slonem loves Great Barrington, according to The Berkshire Edge, and says "it's a wonderful town". The artist loves The Berkshires and all it has to offer the music and art communities.
Formerly a boarding school, known as the John Dewey Academy, the castle is being converted back into a single-residence home. However, imagine, for a moment, attending high school in a Hogwarts-style castle. Those days are now gone.
With the sale of this massive home comes the hope that the artist owner will one day open its doors to the public, perhaps with his personal art exhibit. Hunt Slonem is an accomplished artist, featuring prints with vibrant colors and repetition.
There is a large wall surrounding the property, which has had many of the townspeople up in arms about the blocked view of the beloved Berkshire mountains.
The town has assessed the property at $8 million, which includes 60 acres of land in addition to the French Chateau-style house. Zillow has an estimated value of nearly $4 million, and in 2007, the property was listed at $15 million.
Either way, it looks like the castle and surrounding property is in good hands with its new owner.
Let's take a peek inside and at some of the highlights from Luxury Real Estate.com.