One of the most beautiful historic luxury homes of Stamford Connecticut is Marion Castle, built in 1914 by Frank Marion, one of the first pioneers of freshmen. This stunning Neo-French Renaissance waterfront on one Rogers Road, Shippan Point is an example of the era of Stamford in early 1900, from the farming community to the year-round living of rich New York families.
Marion Castle was built by one of the first real filmologists Frank Marion, whose company Kalem released some of the earliest ones that were shown in nickeledones and silent cinemas throughout the country. His first big hit was Ben Hur in 1907, which lasted fifteen minutes, most of all, mainly in the chariot race. The film was shot on the beach with firefighters, as actors using horses, which usually pulled out fire cars pulling chariots.
Ben Hur was one of the most popular novels of his time, and the film was an immediate success. Frank Marion showed himself not only a good businessman, but also a conscious social when he increased the actors' daily wages to five dollars a day - forcing the rest of the film industry to do the same.
However, Marion was at the forefront of what was at the time a new technology of its time. The publisher and estate of author Ben Hure completely relocated the company to the US Supreme Court and established the first author precedent, which, despite the fact that the film was focused only on the chariot race, which was a very short part of the book, film producers must first get print rights before they can create a movie based on this work.
Unadunted, Marion, Kalem further made the history of the movies, sending the crew to Ireland in 1910 to make what was the first American movie that was filmed on location outside the United States. Two years later, he sent a film crew to Palestine, where the film From the Sign to the Cross was shot.
These films were very successful, he sold the company ten years later in cinema and built Marion Castle as his home for the elderly for the pleasure of his wife, son and four daughters.
Marion Castle was designed in the style of the French Renaissance castle by the famous architectural firm Hunt & Hunt from New York, which made this style very popular on Fifth Avenue at the turn of the century. Marion Castle is part of several castles of the Loire Valley.
It has a steep slate roof with copper ridges towering above the main building of the mansion. The front face has large dormer windows with high gables bordering the finishes. The side wing facing the sea side has a large triple window with multi-million and transom bars and steps leading to the class.
On the north side of the house, a long half-timbered cove is projected from the main wall leading to a circular tower, giving it its own special “castle”. The interior includes a balanced main room and nearly thirty additional rooms of various sizes and uses.
Frank Marion built and occupied Marion Castle until his death in 93 in 1963. The property was then sold to Martha and David Kogan, an inventor and leader in the development of radio and television, who helped develop the first television tube. Martha was widely seen and respected for saving many children from Hitler during World War II.
In 1978, Jay Kobrin and Gordon Mikunis acquired Marion Castle and were very influential in getting into the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 - the only structure at Shippan Point Stamford listed in the Register.
Since 1998, Marion’s castle has been owned and occupied by Thomas L. Rich, a well-known real estate developer in Stamford. Mr. Rich allowed the home to be widely used for non-commercial events, such as the annual Shippan Point Association community group.
Today, the beautiful historic luxurious house of Frank Marion on the waterfront is one of the most characteristic landmarks of Stamford CT. Being the owner of several innovative civilian entrepreneurs, Marion Castle continues to be the centerpiece of many important urban and public events in the city.
