The other side of the castle

Hopefully you enjoyed my post about Bishop Castle yesterday! Many people around here consider its creator, Jim Bishop, to be a bit of a folk hero. Everyone knows that he's a little eccentric. You'd have to be eccentric to spend decades of your life building an entire castle by hand, unassisted! I actually met Mr. Bishop and his wife Phoebe quite a few years ago when I shot a wedding at Bishop Castle. He was hard at work mixing concrete on that day. I remember him being extremely muscular and strong as an ox. The next day, there was a wedding after-party in Colorado Springs, and he and Phoebe attended, all dressed up and ready to dance. They were very nice and clearly had a fun time. Last month, I (and many other locals) were saddened to hear that Mr. Bishop is now very ill with cancer. I hope all his years of being in such peak physical condition are a help to him now, as he faces the fight of his life. His family has been posting updates to the castle's Facebook page HERE, if you'd like to know the latest.

As much as it can be argued that the castle itself is a work of Outsider Art (and I do consider it to be that), I think all the hand painted signs around the property are too. It's clear that Mr. Bishop has, over the years, harbored a deeply seated loathing for any form of government, and he has not been shy about making his feelings known all over the castle grounds. Not surprisingly, as he constructed his magnum opus, various zoning laws and ordinances were brought to his attention by the authorities. Many a pitched battle ensued, and undoubtedly this was the root of and the fuel for his anti-government position. The signs around the property are generally rants expressing his feelings with the occasional request for donations thrown in. I thought they deserved a post unto themselves, so here you go.

The log cabin next to the castle, also built by Mr. Bishop (I believe his father helped construct it).