KIPS CASTLE:

• I received an email from a relative of Kip's that disputes the story as commonly told about how Kip's Castle was built and it's origins.

• Frederick Kip was a textile magnate who moved here from Europe in 1902. The Castle was transported stone by stone from Europe and reassembled next to the Klasztor Salvatorian Fathers Monastery. The 9,000 SF Norman Castle, is a 30 room mansion, completely recreated including the original stained glass windows, wood banisters and old-English quarter-sawn oak paneling, turrets, arches and deep set windows set on every wall,even a small chapel complete with mahogany mantelpiece. Large iron gates complete with giant stone pillars on either side frame the driveway entrance. The driveway itself is a long, winding switchback road that snakes up the hill in 3 lengths, the side of which is lit by lamp poles spaced every 50-100 feet.

• The Castle was sold in 1980 to Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh who established a cult based on sexual openess. The cult eventually moved on to Oregon, and the property was sold to a law office. The law office is looking to sell the property now and there's a chance it may become townhouses.

• Kips Castle is considered one of the top 10 most endangered historic sites in Essex County.

Frederick Kip was a textile magnate who moved here from Europe in 1902. The story as commonly told is that the castle was built there, then moved to America. See below for an email I received disputing that theory. Regardless of it's origin, the castle was large and ornate, but most of the internal beauty does not survive thanks to the actions of the second owners. The property was sold in 1980 to the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, an Indian swami who came to America to seeking medical treatment. (In reality he was fleeing tax evasion charges among other things) The Bhagwan (which means God) was a self appointed spiritual guru. Starting in 1974 with only 7 followers, the Bhagwan would eventually lead a small empire of followers. The followers were known as Sannyasins (or Rajneeshes), and they surrendered all their worldly goods to him, some even changing their names. Many of the followers had been well educated, middle class citizens in their former life. By the time the Bhagwan came to the US, he had over 400 centers world-wide with over 200,000 followers. He had his sight set on the United States...

To announce his arrival in the US, the Bhagwan placed ads in Time magazine preaching spirituality thru sex. Immediately rumors flew around Montclair and the surrounding towns about the Bhagwan and his followers. They flocked to the area from London, Bombay and other far-flung locals. They soon moved into any available home or apartment, trying to be as close to the Bhagwan as possible. The person responsible for the Bhagwan choosing Montclair was his personal secretary Ma Anand Sheela, who attended MSU for 13 years. The Bhagwan promptly covered the old stone walls with sheetrock, the wood floors were covered with linoleum and the stained glass windows were smashed, to prevent the followers from being materialistic.

Soon after his arrival 1981, the town was inundated with red and orange wearing followers of the Bhagwan, which naturally spooked the locals. "We are very concerned about our property values, our children and about this becoming an international HQ for a free-sex cult," said one Montclair resident in a newspaper interview. The Bhagwan as it turns out, has his eyes on bigger fish.

The following year the Bhagwan purchased a 65,000 acre ranch in Oregon. The Bhagwhan called it Rancho Rajneesh, rejecting one of his assistants ideas to call it Rancho Relaxo.(sorry, Simpson's joke. Couldn't resist) The 100 square mile commune, eventually known as Rajneeshpurum had it's own airport, restaurants, and police force. The Bhagwan would visit small local towns each day, slowly converting the town into part of his commune. The process was quite simple, and reminiscent of tactics used in European invasions. If you inject your own culture into another, eventually your culture drives out the original culture. When the Ranjeesh followers would outnumber the local residents, they would elect themselves to the own council, mayor and so forth, and the town was then theirs. Before long, the town of Antelope was now absorbed into the compound.

The Bhagwan success would not last, however. His second in command fled the country with a large amount of the Bhagwan's money after she was accused of arson and attempted murder. She was arrested in West Germany and extradited back to the US. By now the Bhagwan had attracted the attention of several government agencies including the Attorney Generals Office as well as Immigration. He was arrested and charged with immigration violations, plead guilty to 2 counts and was fined 400,000 and forced to serve his suspended sentence outside the US. Much like that garbage boat which tried to enter country after country without success before being sent home, he finally was able to return to his native India where he died of heart failure a few years later. The city of Rajneesh, Oregon reverted to its original name Antelope, after the state determined that the conversion of the town violated separation of church and state.

Back in Montclair, Kip's Castle was bought in 1984 by the law offices of Schwartz, Tobia and Stanziale. Purchase price: 850,000. Twenty years later, the lawyers are planning to move, and there is a very real chance that Kip's castle may be knocked down to create condos and townhouses. The asking price for Kip's Castle, the carriage house and the 15 acres of property is 4.8 million, but it is believed that the proposed development is worth upwards of 30 million.

The future of the Castle is bleak, which is why the Preservation NJ website, which focuses on preserving historic buildings and properties that are threatened  by neglect or development, considered it one of the most threatened proeprties in Essex County.  It will take a great amount of money and willpower to buy the property yet resist the urge to develop it in the manner which has been proposed. Clearly there is money to be made. It remains to be seen whether money or history will prevail. I must say a big thank you to the law office of Schwartz, Tobia and Stanziale for granting me a brief visit to the property. 

I was really impressed with the castle. Inside & out you can tell it was made with high quality material and built with old fashioned quality hand construction. Sure the inside now has standard plaster walls and modern lighting, but you can imagine what this building must have been like at the turn of the 20th century without trying too hard. What will become of the castle is still an unknown, but I will always remember my visit Kip's Castle. There simply is nothing like it in North jersey that I know of (well ok, maybe one or two like Lambert Castle, but it's still damn unique) The office manager was extremely nice and showed me just about the entire building pointing out interesting features such as the expensive Dutch tile (called Delft) used to cover the walls of the bathroom, the curved glass windows in the waiting area.

                                                                                                      A picture of Frederick Kip graces their main entrance area.

Email from Diane

Dear "Lost in Jersey," I so enjoyed reading your page on Kip's Castle - and the pictures!!! They are just wonderful. I was doubly interested in the site because some years ago while searching the internet for Kips, I saw a real estate listing for the property and wondered if it had any connection to my ancestors, the Kips. When I found your site and the incredible "tour" of the property, I did some additional research. I thought you might be interested to know that Frederick Kip did not move here from Europe in 1902. In fact, he is a descendant of "my" Kips who came to New Amsterdam in about 1637. He is a 9th generation American. The book, "The Kip Family in America," was written by Frederick Ellsworth Kip - the same person who made his home in Kip's Castle (or Kypsburg); and the book details his life and includes pictures of the family and the home.

He was born in 1862 in Passaic, New Jersey, married Charlotte Bishop Williams in New York City in 1884 in the Little Church Around the Corner at 29th Street between Madison & Fifth Avenues. They spent their early married life in New York City and in their home at Essex, near Nutley, NJ. In 1902, they started building Kypsburg on top of the mountain at Montclair, NJ; and moved into the completed home on February 5, 1905. The portrait that you photographed was by Irving Wiles. Frederic Ellsworth Kip was educated in the public schools of Passaic. His work history is fairly well stated in his book. He started out as an office boy at the age of 16 for Libby, Bartlett & Kimball, Commission Merchants in lubricating oils and paraffin wax in NYC, which led him to a job working for the Standard Oil Company. In 1881, Mr. Kip had an opportunity and entered, as stock clerk, the Velvet and Plush (Pile Fabric) Department of Fleitmann & Co., then on Broome Street in NYC. In 1883, he became a salesman for Fred Victor & Achelis in their Pile Fabric Department and in a few years became the head of the department.

In 1893, Mr. Kip, in conjunction with two others, purchased the American plant of the Sir Titus Salt's Co. The Salt's Textile Mfg. Co. of Connecticut was incorporated with Mr. Kip as President. He went on to become President of five additional textile companies, one of them being in Paris and Lyon, France and another in Bradford, England. He was a member of the NY Yacht Club, the Union League Club of NY, the Holland Society, the Montclair Golf Club and the Sons of the American Revolution. He was President of the Businessmen Political Federation of NYC for six years; and was a delegate from NJ to the Progressive Party's National Convention in 1912 and also a delegate in 1916 to the Republican National Convention. He also was an inventor and had taken out some 100 US patents, mainly for improvements in looms; and he made exhaustive studies of tariffs and industrial conditions, having considerable influence upon improvements to US tariff laws, and also authored many books on the subject. It is said that Mrs. Kip started the building of Kypsburgh, laying out some fifteen acres in grounds and gardens. After moving into the house, she continued to further improve and lay out the grounds and created a beautiful octagon rose garden. Well, I'm sure that's much more than you wanted to know! But since you took so many beautiful pictures, I thought I would respond in kind with the true history of Kip's Castle.

Thanks! Diane Benelli

And a second email

Well, I'm thrilled that you're so excited to have the information on Frederick! You see, about four years ago, I started this "little" genealogy project (ha!) and I have become so addicted that sometimes in conversations I have these out of body experiences where I can see how I'm going on and on and can't help myself, while the other person gets that glazed look in their eyes. It seems that other genealogists also have this disease. I won't bore you with the number of places I've traveled just to get another piece of the family puzzle - and there are some interesting ones! I'm actually working on an article about my ggg grandmother, Sarah Kip, and her siblings and their trials and tribulations during the American Revolution. You will find more information in the Kip book, because since it was actually written by Frederick himself, he goes "on and on" for a couple of pages about his work with tariffs and congress and free trade; and various issues that he proved by his work with statistics - not to mention his opinion of the League of Nations!

I have a reprinted copy of the book and would be glad to send the relevant pages to you by snail mail if you like. Being a researcher, you may have that other disease, which is wanting to see it right now! Let me know and I can at least satisfy your initial curiosity. The only downside is that the pictures are not of good quality, e.g. the one of Mrs. Kip sitting in one of "the alcove windows at Kypsburg" and some others of the grounds with her granddaughters are really grainy. It actually appears to me that some of the photos are taken from the same angle as yours were, particularly the entrance. I believe that the NY Public Library at 42nd street has an original copy - and you might check with the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society in Manhattan. I think I've seen an original copy there also. Sorry that Kypsburg wasn't transported brick by brick from Europe - that would have been a lovely story - but the sign of a good researcher is when the truth is told. I actually find it more inspiring that Frederick started as a stock clerk and accomplished so much in the land of opportunity. Please stay in touch. I'd love to read your book when you're done. Also, just let me know if you have trouble finding The Kip book, and I'll be glad to send you copies of the relevant pages.