George's Glass CastleGeorge Plumb (d. 1976)
Non Extant
Duncan, British Columbia, V9L 1N3, Canada
begun 1962
About the Artist/Site
Apparently interested in challenging himself with a new material, retired carpenter George Plumb purchased a single acre in Duncan, British Columbia, in 1962 with the intention of building multiple structures from bottles. He used donated milk, soft-drink, liquor, wine, and antique bottles as well as several television sets to construct a castle, a well, replicas of the Taj Mahal and Leaning Tower of Pisa, and a giant Coca-Cola bottle. An estimated 5,000 bottles were used to build the five-room home known as the Glass Castle. Plumb made swift work of this construction, completing the building in 1963.
A caption from one of the vintage postcards pictured above says, "This castle, made up of over 180,000 bottles of every kind, is situated on the Island Highway, 3 miles south of Duncan. It houses a museum and unique souvenirs."
Plumb died in 1976, and his family maintained the site until sometime in the 1990s. It was then sold to a couple who operated George's Glass Castle as a tourist attraction; however, it was eventually allowed to degrade. Though there was interest in saving Plumb's work, the site was ultimately razed for highway expansion.
Materials
bottles
Related Documents
Map & Site Information
Duncan, British Columbia, V9L 1N3
ca
Latitude/Longitude: 48.778691 / -123.707942
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