Heritage Park – Hixson Castles
The Hixson Castles were started in 1940 by Ada Hixson for her enjoyment and using her imagination.
The first castle she built was of river rock; the last one (the big white one) was finished in 1950.
The castles and fence posts were initially located on the Hixson place east of Highway 395 at the Blue Creek turn-off. There was quite a lot of landscaping around them, including flowers, shrubs, a rock wall, etc.
In March 1968, because of the widening of Highway 395, the castles were moved to a place farther south and were never set up again, except for two large fence posts that you can still see along the highway. The original House was also moved, but you can still see the barn in its original place back against the hillside.
The rocks used in the construction of the castles came from various sites; some from close to home, the white rock from just north of Spokane, and some from the Deep Creek Road near Northport.
The balls on top of the fence posts were formed by a ball of cement and rocks. The round balls on the top of the small castles were formed over tennis balls. A small nail keg and tomato flats were used as a form for the small castles, then covered with cement and rocks. No one seems to remember if a form was used on the larger castle. The small castle was filled with cement because it was not holding up well, and the window was painted on.
Mrs. Hixson had a small amount of help from time to time. Lea Hixson helped by hauling some of the big rocks, and her daughter Genevieve Hixson- Schwager occasionally gave her a helping hand.
In 1993, after gaining permission from the Hixson heirs, SCHS agreed to move the castles to the Keller Heritage Center in memory of Ada Hixson. Dick Baker and his equipment from Colville Construction, Tom Dodson, and Newell Wilson made this big move possible.
Ada Hixson’s daughter, Genevieve Schwager, provided this information in 2003.
Written by Elva Bryan