Ron Hitler-Barassi
08-01-2008, 05:00 AM
An amazing little man was Edward Leedskalnin
History
Edward Leedskalnin was jilted by his 16-year-old fiancée Agnes Scuffs in Latvia, just one day before the wedding. Leaving for America, he came down with terminal tuberculosis[citation needed] but spontaneously healed, stating that magnets had some effect on his disease.
Hoping to somehow impress Scuffs, he spent over 28 years building the Coral Castle, refusing to allow anyone to view him while he worked. A few teenagers, who claimed to have witnessed his work, reported that he had caused the blocks of coral to move like hydrogen balloons. The only tool that Leedskalnin spoke of using was a "perpetual motion holder."
Leedskalnin originally built the castle, which he named Rock Gate Park, in Florida City, FL around 1923. He purchased the land from Ruben Moser whose wife helped assist him when he had a very bad bout with tuberculosis.[1] Florida City, which borders the Florida Everglades, is the southernmost city in the United States that is not on an island. It was an extremely remote location with very little development at the time. The castle remained in Florida City until about 1936 when Leedskalnin decided to move and take the castle with him. No one knows for sure why Leedskalnin decided to relocate. The Coral Castle website states that he chose to move in order to protect his privacy when discussion about developing land in the area of the castle started.[2] The second commonly held notion was that he wanted to relocate to a more populous locale after being badly beaten one night by hooligans looking to rob him.[3] He spent three years moving the Coral Castle structures ten miles (16 km) north from Florida City to its current location in Homestead, FL.
Leedskalnin continued to work on the castle up until his death in 1951. The coral pieces that are part of the newer castle and were not among those transported from the original location were quarried on the property only a few feet away from the southern wall.
Leedskalnin charged ten cents a head to give tours of the grounds. There are signs carved into rocks at the front gate to "Ring Bell Twice" and a second sign just inside the property that says "Adm. 10c Drop Below". He would come down from his living quarters which were the second story of the castle tower and are close to the gate and conduct the tour. Leedskalnin never told anyone that asked him how he made the castle. He would simply answer "It's not difficult if you know how." If asked why he had made this castle, Leedskalnin would vaguely answer it was for his "Sweet Sixteen."
When Leedskalnin became ill in December 1951, he put a sign on the door of the front gate "Going to the Hospital" and took the bus to a Miami hospital. The doctors discovered Leedskalnin was suffering from malnutrition. He passed away in the hospital three days later.
While the property was being investigated, $3,500 was found among Leedskalnin's personal belongings. Leedskalnin had made his income from conducting tours, selling pamphlets about various subjects (including magnetic currents) and the sale of a portion of his ten acre property for the construction of U.S. Route 1.[4] Having no will, the castle became the property of his closest living relative in America, a nephew from Michigan named Harry.[5]
The Coral Castle website reports that the nephew was in poor health and he sold the castle to an Illinois family in 1953. However this story differs from the obituary of a former Coral Castle owner, Julius Levin, a retired jeweler from Chicago, IL. The obituary states Levin had purchased the land from the state of Florida in 1952 and may not have been aware there was even a castle on the land.[6]
The new owners changed the name of Rock Gate Park to Coral Castle and turned it into a tourist attraction.[7]
In January of 1981, Levin sold the castle to the Coral Castle, Inc. for $175,000.[8] They remain the owners today.
In 1984, The National Register of Historic Places added Rock Gate, also known as Coral Castle, to its list of historic places.[9]
Controversy surrounding its construction
The structure is considered mysterious by some, mainly because it is often said that one man assembled the entire structure. Leedskalnin seems to have gone to great lengths to ensure that he was not observed working. The Castle's official site states that "Ed did much of his work at night by lantern light. The Coral Castle has numerous lookouts along the Castle walls that were designed to help protect his privacy." [17]
There are various theories that hold that Leedskalnin constructed the Castle using some unknown form of science. For example, one website claims that "Ed Leedskalnin left behind the blueprints of nature, a Secret Knowledge of the Ancients" [18] Such theories seem to discount evidence such as photographs which exist showing Leedskalnin working apparently using traditional methods like block and tackle [19].
There is, however, skepticism as to the success of the traditional methods of tripods equipped with pulleys and chains that are in the photographs of Leedskalnin working. Skeptics point out that the Tripods appear to only rise about 20 feet (6.1 m) while the largest stones are 25 feet (7.6 m) long and stand vertical. The tripods are made from wooden telephone poles and could not support the larger stones. There are not enough pulleys to lessen the weight of the stones enough that a 100-pound man could exert enough force to lift the stones. Too many pulleys will actually be counterproductive because of increased friction. The 3/8" thick chains that can still be found in the Tool Room of the Castle Tower and which are seen in the photographs are only rated with a 3.5 ton workload and would not be able to support the weight of the stones.[20]
The Coral Castle site states that "if anyone ever questioned Ed about how he moved the blocks of coral, Ed would only reply that he understood the laws of weight and leverage well." [21] He also stated that he had "discovered the secrets of the pyramids" [22], which of course could be interpreted in either esoteric or engineering terms.
The Coral Castle site claims that "[Ed Leedskalnin] has baffled engineers and scientists!" [23] However a skeptical website claimed that "despite the information on their Web site, the Coral Castle information booth was unable to identify a single scientist or engineer who had specifically examined the castle" [24].
Awesome Leonard Nimoy In Search Of episode on Coral Castle
jqyH8ueCAsY
Part 1
History
Edward Leedskalnin was jilted by his 16-year-old fiancée Agnes Scuffs in Latvia, just one day before the wedding. Leaving for America, he came down with terminal tuberculosis[citation needed] but spontaneously healed, stating that magnets had some effect on his disease.
Hoping to somehow impress Scuffs, he spent over 28 years building the Coral Castle, refusing to allow anyone to view him while he worked. A few teenagers, who claimed to have witnessed his work, reported that he had caused the blocks of coral to move like hydrogen balloons. The only tool that Leedskalnin spoke of using was a "perpetual motion holder."
Leedskalnin originally built the castle, which he named Rock Gate Park, in Florida City, FL around 1923. He purchased the land from Ruben Moser whose wife helped assist him when he had a very bad bout with tuberculosis.[1] Florida City, which borders the Florida Everglades, is the southernmost city in the United States that is not on an island. It was an extremely remote location with very little development at the time. The castle remained in Florida City until about 1936 when Leedskalnin decided to move and take the castle with him. No one knows for sure why Leedskalnin decided to relocate. The Coral Castle website states that he chose to move in order to protect his privacy when discussion about developing land in the area of the castle started.[2] The second commonly held notion was that he wanted to relocate to a more populous locale after being badly beaten one night by hooligans looking to rob him.[3] He spent three years moving the Coral Castle structures ten miles (16 km) north from Florida City to its current location in Homestead, FL.
Leedskalnin continued to work on the castle up until his death in 1951. The coral pieces that are part of the newer castle and were not among those transported from the original location were quarried on the property only a few feet away from the southern wall.
Leedskalnin charged ten cents a head to give tours of the grounds. There are signs carved into rocks at the front gate to "Ring Bell Twice" and a second sign just inside the property that says "Adm. 10c Drop Below". He would come down from his living quarters which were the second story of the castle tower and are close to the gate and conduct the tour. Leedskalnin never told anyone that asked him how he made the castle. He would simply answer "It's not difficult if you know how." If asked why he had made this castle, Leedskalnin would vaguely answer it was for his "Sweet Sixteen."
When Leedskalnin became ill in December 1951, he put a sign on the door of the front gate "Going to the Hospital" and took the bus to a Miami hospital. The doctors discovered Leedskalnin was suffering from malnutrition. He passed away in the hospital three days later.
While the property was being investigated, $3,500 was found among Leedskalnin's personal belongings. Leedskalnin had made his income from conducting tours, selling pamphlets about various subjects (including magnetic currents) and the sale of a portion of his ten acre property for the construction of U.S. Route 1.[4] Having no will, the castle became the property of his closest living relative in America, a nephew from Michigan named Harry.[5]
The Coral Castle website reports that the nephew was in poor health and he sold the castle to an Illinois family in 1953. However this story differs from the obituary of a former Coral Castle owner, Julius Levin, a retired jeweler from Chicago, IL. The obituary states Levin had purchased the land from the state of Florida in 1952 and may not have been aware there was even a castle on the land.[6]
The new owners changed the name of Rock Gate Park to Coral Castle and turned it into a tourist attraction.[7]
In January of 1981, Levin sold the castle to the Coral Castle, Inc. for $175,000.[8] They remain the owners today.
In 1984, The National Register of Historic Places added Rock Gate, also known as Coral Castle, to its list of historic places.[9]
Controversy surrounding its construction
The structure is considered mysterious by some, mainly because it is often said that one man assembled the entire structure. Leedskalnin seems to have gone to great lengths to ensure that he was not observed working. The Castle's official site states that "Ed did much of his work at night by lantern light. The Coral Castle has numerous lookouts along the Castle walls that were designed to help protect his privacy." [17]
There are various theories that hold that Leedskalnin constructed the Castle using some unknown form of science. For example, one website claims that "Ed Leedskalnin left behind the blueprints of nature, a Secret Knowledge of the Ancients" [18] Such theories seem to discount evidence such as photographs which exist showing Leedskalnin working apparently using traditional methods like block and tackle [19].
There is, however, skepticism as to the success of the traditional methods of tripods equipped with pulleys and chains that are in the photographs of Leedskalnin working. Skeptics point out that the Tripods appear to only rise about 20 feet (6.1 m) while the largest stones are 25 feet (7.6 m) long and stand vertical. The tripods are made from wooden telephone poles and could not support the larger stones. There are not enough pulleys to lessen the weight of the stones enough that a 100-pound man could exert enough force to lift the stones. Too many pulleys will actually be counterproductive because of increased friction. The 3/8" thick chains that can still be found in the Tool Room of the Castle Tower and which are seen in the photographs are only rated with a 3.5 ton workload and would not be able to support the weight of the stones.[20]
The Coral Castle site states that "if anyone ever questioned Ed about how he moved the blocks of coral, Ed would only reply that he understood the laws of weight and leverage well." [21] He also stated that he had "discovered the secrets of the pyramids" [22], which of course could be interpreted in either esoteric or engineering terms.
The Coral Castle site claims that "[Ed Leedskalnin] has baffled engineers and scientists!" [23] However a skeptical website claimed that "despite the information on their Web site, the Coral Castle information booth was unable to identify a single scientist or engineer who had specifically examined the castle" [24].
Awesome Leonard Nimoy In Search Of episode on Coral Castle
jqyH8ueCAsY
Part 1