HIPPOL / GIMGHOUL CASTLE

The organization was formed in 1889 by Edward Wray Martin, William W. Davies, Shepard Bryan, Andrew Henry Patterson, and Robert Worth Bingham. Originally called Dromgoole, the name was changed to Gimgoole, and lastly to Gimghoul. Its official name is "Knights of the Order of Gimghouls."

In 1915, after acquiring 2.12 acres on which to build, the Order of the Gimghoul hired a group of stonemasons descended from castle-builders of old in southern France and Italy to construct their castle from 1,300 tons of rough stone. The structure was completed in 1926 at a cost of roughly $50,000. In financing their construction, the Order sold 35 acres of property that would later be designated as the “Gimghoul Neighborhood Historic District" (Chapelboro.com, Mar 30, 2018).

UNC Postcard Collection

Architect's/artist's rendition of Hippol, 1924

1940s postcard

1940s (photo by Bayard Wootten, via UNC)

For an excellent article on the place and the group (with photos), read thetab.com/us/unc/2015/10/28/the-eerie-past-of-gimghoul-castles-secret-society-1350