MUNCIE, Ind. (WTHR) - It is said a man's home is his castle. Well, this Muncie castle is someone's home.
It started simply enough when Robert Logan proposed to his wife Barbara some 50 years ago and she responded, "'If you build me a castle I will marry you,' and he did."
Block by block. He literally built her her castle.
"He said, 'I can make them, so we will pour it and I will make them,' so we made every single block in this house," she continued.
That is no simple feat, considering each block weighed between 200 and 300 pounds. But 24 years and 2,000 cement blocks later, this work in progress is done.
Robert said there was never a time when he said he was kidding about building the castle.
"Kind of a hobby for me. Kept me busy and out of trouble," he said.
So now, five daughters, 11 foreign exchange students, and the grandkids have enjoyed it.
"We have had people stop, one man asked if his daughter could have her birthday party here and had people ask if they could take a tour," Barbara noted. "Guys, we live here."
Barbara says it's just a normal house on the inside--if you think having knights meeting you when you come in the front door is normal.
"Every time we saw one of those, he bought it. They are sprinkled around. I think we have six of them," Barbara remembered.
Then there is the coat of arms in the living room.
"We picked it up in Mexico 40 years ago before we even thought of the castle," Barbara pointed out. "Had the swords before we built it too," Robert added.
"He started collecting swords 40 years ago too," Barbara said.
It's a coincidence both of them share so many of the same interests. "Lucky I guess," Robert said.
They both have the genes for it. Robert's descendants came from Scotland, Barbara's from Ireland.
And then there is the guest room.
"This is our heart and soul in this. We are hoping that one of our children will decide 'let's keep this in the family and keep it going,'" Barbara said.
It takes two air conditioners and two furnaces to keep the castle's 5,193 square feet comfortable.
The job almost killed Robert. He suffered a massive coronary and underwent triple bypass surgery.
I asked Robert if there should be a throne for the king of the castle. "Ought to be," he said. "Want me to tell him your nickname," Barbara asked her husband. "Sir Sitsalot," he answered. A nickname given to him by the grandkids.
He's earned the right to rest. So now the two of them can enjoy the fruit of their spoils.
It may be a castle to others, but to Robert and Barbara? "Home," Barbara replied simply.
