The Third Angel Sounded | The Degenerate Art of Nick Kushner

A mystical monument which one man built for his lost love almost seventy years ago, spurned by his "Sweet Sixteen" leaving him the day before their wedding. The feat is one which can scarcely be replicated today with modern day machinery and was created solely by a 5 foot, 100 pound Latvian immigrant named Ed Leedskalnin using only rudimentary hand tools. Created entirely of coral quarried underneath the Florida soil, Ed claimed to know the secrets of how the Pyramids were built which has resulted in Coral Castle being compared to anomalies such as the Giza Pyramids as well as Stonehenge. Ed built his monument over the course of 28 years working in solitude with many believing he knew possessed the ability to manipulate gravity. What is seen is a mystical lifelong creation inspired by a romantic tragedy. Read further below for a full history and commentary of some of the amazing features of Coral Castle.

HISTORY OF CORAL CASTLE

"The Coral Castle, originally called "Rock Gate Park", was built by one man, working alone. It took him 20 years to build from 1920 - 1940. His name is Edward Leedskalnin. Ed was born in Latvia in 1887 and died in Miami in 1951. He was 64. When Ed was 26, he was engaged to marry Agnes Scuffs who was 10 years younger than he was. He always referred to her as "Sweet Sixteen". On the day before the wedding, she told Ed she did not want to marry him because he was too old for her. In later years Ed believed there were other reasons for her rejecting him; he didn't have any money; he had only a fourth grade education; and most important he believed she loved someone else. In 1980, we knew that "Sweet Sixteen" was alive in Latvia - widowed - knew about the monument Ed built to her 0 but had never seen it. Ed was hurt by the rejection and left Latvia. He wandered for several years and eventually made his way to Canada and then down to California and Texas.

"He worked in the lumber camps and was involved in at least one cattle drive in Texas. These types of jobs gave Ed strength which he later used in cutting and moving blocks of coral weighing many tons. What makes Ed's work remarkable is the fact that he was five feet tall and weighed 100 pounds.

"At some point during his wanderings he developed a touch of tuberculosis. He was told that Southern Florida has a good climate so he came here sometime during the 1918 - 1920 period. He bought an acre of ground in Florida City which is 10 miles south of here [Homestead] for $12.00. Ed believed that the United States was the land of opportunity - a place in which a person could become famous.

"For reasons unknown to us, Ed chose to carve a castle of coral in dedication to "Sweet Sixteen". This part of Florida is composed of coral, in some places as much as 4,000 feet thick, covered with very few inches of topsoil. The remarkable feat was in cutting and moving huge coral blocks single handedly using hand tools. People in the area became curious about the coral furniture that Ed was carving. You must understand that during the period that Ed was building the castle - both in Florida City and here, we cannot find any record or any person who saw Ed work. Ed remained in Florida City until about 1936. At that time someone planned to build a sub-division near him.

"Since Ed was a very private person he decided to move. He came to this location and you will see the inside of the Castle was carved in Florida City.

"How did Ed move all of these carvings a distance of 10 miles?

"Ed had the chassis of an old Republic truck on which he laid two rails. He had a friend with a tractor who moved the loaded trailer from Florida City to here. Many people saw the coral carvings being moved along the old Dixie Highway. No one ever saw Ed loading or unloading the trailer. Why not? Ed did much of his work at night by lantern light. He seemed to have a sixth sense which told him when someone was trying to spy on him. The numerous lookouts along the Castle walls attest to his suspicious nature. The Castle walls and gates prove his desire for privacy. In 1940, after the carvings were in place Ed finished erecting the walls. Ed cut coral from a quarry in front of the Castle similar to the quarry on the right side of the Castle. After Ed died and it was decided to make a tourist attraction of the Castle, the front quarry was filled in. Coral weighs approximately 125 pounds per cubic foot. Each wall is 8 feet tall, 4 feet wide, 3 foot thick and weigh approximately 13,000 pounds. The sign on the walls were placed there by Ed.

Ed wrote a total of five pamphlets, "A Book In Every Home" contains Ed's thought on 3 subjects, "Sweet Sixteen, Domestic and Political Views." He wrote 3 pamphlets on "Magnetic Current." His "Mineral, Vegetable and Animal Life" Contains his beliefs on life's cycle.

"In December of 1951 Ed became ill. He put a sign on the door saying, "Going to the Hospital." He took a bus to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami . Three days later her died in his sleep. Ed had cancer of the stomach. He was 64. After his death a nephew living in Michigan inherited the Castle. In 1953 shortly before his death her sold the Castle to a family from Chicago. During the take-over a box of Ed's effects were found and examined. It contained a set of instructions which led to the discovery of 35 $100 bills, his life savings. Ed made and saved this money from giving tours for ten and twenty - five cents; from the the sale of his pamphlets; and from the sale of land upon which Highway U.S. 1 passes the Castle."

...CORAL CASTLE TOUR GUIDE PROGRAM