Stokesay Castle

Stokesay Castle perches on the side of Mount Penn, near the junction of Hill Road and the appropriately-named Spook Lane. The stone structure has graced the Reading landscape for many years as a fine restaurant. Catering to a high-dollar crowd, Stokesay has always been a popular site for wedding receptions. But some folks say it has a bit more spirit than some like. The Castle is an intriguing place to me as I am a distant cousin of the guy that built it!

George Baer Hiester built Stokesay in 1931. It was designed as a replica of the castle by the same name in England. Meant as a honeymoon present for his new bride, but things didn’t quite work out the way George planned. Coming from a upper class background, the money to build his dream castle was not a problem for George. Born in 1909, George had every expectation for a life filled with every comfort. But his bride did not share his vision. She didn’t like Stokesay and never wanted to live there. So it served as an occasional summer party house until George finally sold it in 1956. 

Though the website for Stokesay only gives a brief history, the local story is a bit different. George’s bride not only did not like the place, it supposedly drove her crazy, literally. Hiester married Anne Nicolls in November of 1931 and headed out to Bermuda for their honeymoon. Though George took many trips over the next several years, this appears to be the only time he and his wife traveled together. Anne died in 1949 and George died in 1962 – both of them remarried after their divorce. Who haunts Stokesay? Is it George or his wife? Or someone else entirely?

Besides its potential as a haunted place, Stokesay Castle also has a few structural oddities. Hiester feared kidnappers so he built a secret room in the castle. He also greatly feared fire and so he maintained his own personal fire engine on the site.