Castle Northmoor, Missouri
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member Queens Blessing
N 39° 11.160 W 094° 36.118
15S E 361643 N 4338639
This wonderful castle has been featured in several newspaper articles, and yet remains a little-known gem.
Waymark Code: WMBT0C
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 06/18/2011
Views: 33

There is an active Geocache at this location (GCX612) which is a favorite of many.

Here is a brief recount of the castle:

Harlan Shaver, of the tiny burg called Northmoor that sits in the shadow of Kansas City, spent part of his life in the construction business, had heard of men in Iowa and Florida who had built their own castles, which prompted him to start his own castle-building project around 1981. The stone castle, which is in the form of a tower, took two years to complete, and measures 40 feet tall, 16 feet across. It is decorated with Shaver's handmake oak doors (one is said to weigh 250 pounds), handmade hammered-iron scrolls and hinges on the doors, his own oil paintings of knights, and features cast concrete lion gargoyles that provide drainage for the roof; the rainwater pours thru their mouths (and one lion is outfited with a security camera in his mouth.) A spiral staircase provides access to the entire tower.


About the builder:
The Kansas City Star interviewed the builder of the Northmoor Castle for their December 5, 1995 article that appeared in the "Our Town" section of the newspaper. (A laminated copy of the article is in the "treasure chest" for geocachers and other visitors to enjoy). Harlan Shaver, then 84 years old, was described as a 5 ft 6 inch tall dynamo, quick witted, quick of movement, and quick to share his story. An incredibly active man, he had a diverse life. He met his wife while both were involved in the development of the B-25 bomber during WWII, was a talented musician, artist, and extremely active; he was known to do one-arm pushups and ride his bicycle until his death in his early 90's.

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Question to answer: There are 2 round windows that you can view into, on the ground level. Choose one window and tell me what you saw looking back at you.

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link to the geocache page:
(visit link)

The DIFFICULTY RATING is 1 if you do not climb the spiral staircase, but increases to 3 if you choose to climb.

Check the geocache on the geocaching.com website; as long as it is active, you may climb the spiral staircase to the top (the castle owner has provided permission). Please only visit during reasonable hours, and not on holidays. This is a private residence.
Terrain Rating:

Photo Required: yes

Hint: Not listed

Visit Instructions:

Visitors must answer the verification questions (or post a photo when that alternative is allowed). The answers should be emailed to the waymark owner for verification, not to the category officers. Answers should never be posted in the logs. Visitor are also asked to rank their experience for "Wow". Premium members should use the ranking feature (1 means "wasn't worth the visit" and 5 means "Wow"). Non-premium members can let us know in their logs.

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Recent Visits/Logs:
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Truvtter visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 06/28/2021 Truvtter visited it
Awol visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 06/28/2019 Awol visited it
tipete visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 06/18/2015 tipete visited it
Trekkie79 visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 10/11/2014 Trekkie79 visited it
Secret Sharer visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 07/18/2013 Secret Sharer visited it
danny dog visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 02/10/2013 danny dog visited it
ornith visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 09/16/2012 ornith visited it
gretchenthegober visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 02/26/2012 gretchenthegober visited it
doug_hollyNKC visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 07/15/2011 doug_hollyNKC visited it
Queens Blessing visited Castle Northmoor, Missouri 05/21/2011 Queens Blessing visited it

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