MORRIS COUNTY

Morris Twp. castle sells for $4 million

Michael Izzo
@MIzzoDR

It's not every day that someone hoping to own a castle gets their wish.

Glynallyn, Morris Township's 66-room castle-style mansion complete with a dungeon, has been sold for a record amount to a couple living in town.

The mansion sold on June 18 for $4 million, according to Morristown Weichert Realtor Mary Horn. She said the $4 million price tag makes Glynallyn, located on Canfield Road in the Convent Station section of the township, the highest-priced sale in the history of Morris Township.

SEE ALSO: Morris County Home Sales

The 32,000-square-foot mansion sits on 7.5 acres. It was built between 1913 and 1917, the project of George Marshall Allen, who made his fortune in book publishing and color printing, among other ventures.

See it: $3.175 million buys Rumson palace

Glynallyn features 66 rooms, 16 chimneys, 185 doors, and 575 stained glass and old leaded muntined windows. Gargoyles, Tudor roses, Celtic knots, and coats of arms are also featured throughout the property. At the time, the cost of construction was estimated at $500,000.

It is on the National Register of Historic Places, and is a reproduction of Compton Wynyates, a 16th-century castle in Warwickshire, England.

George Allen and his wife Grace lived in Glynallyn until 1952, shortly after Grace passed away in the home. General Drafting Co., a map-making firm, then used Glynallyn as its headquarters for 40 years until 1992.

A couple purchased the home in 1996 and raised their children there until 2011, when the home was foreclosed upon by the Community Bank of Bergen County.

PREVIOUS HOME SALES REPORT: Morris County Home Sales

Through the years, Glynallyn has been featured in a movie "Witness for the Defense" in 1919, and has been referred to as Morris County's own "Downton Abbey."

In 2012, Glynallyn was home to the Mansion in May Designer Showhouse and Gardens, where more than 50 interior and landscape designers refurbished individual rooms and gardens around the castle. The mansion was open to the public for tours at that time.

Glynallyn was listed at the time of Mansion in May, and Horn said the estate drew a lot of interest, but most wanted to tear down the castle. Due to its close proximity to the train station, prospective buyers thought it would be more advantageous to build townhouses or smaller houses on the large property.

"But the neighbors wanted a couple to buy it," Horn said, adding the bank couldn't keep Glynallyn on the books much longer, but in June a couple did decide to buy the castle with the intention to live in it.

"The condition has deteriorated since Mansion in May," Horn said. "It was really in a bad state of disrepair, floors warped, ceilings ruined, there's asbestos in the third floor. But [the buyer] still wanted it. He always wanted a castle."

Work is underway on repairing Glynallyn, and Horn said the couple plans to add a pool and tennis court on the property.

"I went to see it the other day and there was so much work going on I couldn't get in," Horn said. "They're very busy. They will do a monumental job on it. (They couple) is fantastic."

Horn said the couple's hope is they will be able to move in by Christmas, though renovations may push that date back to 2015. The couple could not be reached for comment.

Staff Writer Michael Izzo: 973-428-6636; mizzo@dailyrecord.com

MANSION DETAILS:

The castle-style home features 66 rooms.

The mansion has 16 chimneys, 185 doors and 575 stained glass windows.

The amount of space the 32,000-square foot home is located on: 7.5 acres.

---

SEE MORE MORRIS AREA HOME SALES: https://www.dailyrecord.com/search/home sales/