2023 Best Book in US History- NABE Pinnacle Books Achievement Award New England Book Festival Honorable Mention 2023 When the Algonquin hunted and gathered on Gibbet Hill, the land was thickly forested and dotted with lakes. Centuries later, General William Amos Bancroft, mayor of Cambridge and president of the Boson Elevated Railway, built what is now known as the Castle-and set the scene for 100 years of drama. This is the surprising story of the Castle on Gibbet Hill in Groton, Massachusetts-and the hundreds of lives lived out here. The Hill was witness to a major battle of King Philips War. After it was suddenly sold by Bancroft in 1912 it became a private hospital and admitted patients returning from WWI, only to be closed when its owner became embroiled in the US Contract Hospital scandal. Gibbet Hill was purchased by the super rich Danielson family, owners of The Atlantic Monthly and heirs to the Deering Tractor fortune. They founded the Groton Hunt Club in the 1920s. So symbolic was the hill that the Ku Klux Klan decided to erect a giant cross and set it on fire. Daughter Marion Danielson bought the hill from her mother and founded one of the most important herds of purebred Angus cattle in America, influencing practices that created the modern breed we see today. So why did General Bancroft abandon his plan for a grand baronial estate in Gibbet Hill? Was it the terrible Boston El Strike of 1912 or was it something else? Cherie Dumont presents compelling new evidence. Honorable Mention - The New England Book Fest 'A compelling insight into the history of the castle on Gibbet Hill. A RED RIBBON WINNER and highly recommended!' The Wishing Shelf Book Awards 2023 Best Book in US History- NABE Pinnacle Books Achievement Award "I loved how the author didn't just look at the happenings in the castle over the years, but also what was going on in the country. Utterly fascinating." The Wishing Shelf Book Awards Male reader, aged 65 When the Algonquin hunted and gathered here, the land was thickly forested and dotted with lakes. Centuries later, General William Amos Bancroft built what is now known as the Castle—and set the scene for 100 years of drama. This is the surprising story of the Castle on Gibbet Hill in Groton, Massachusetts—and the hundreds of lives lived out here. From rail strikes and TB hospitals to sporting hijinks and purebred cattle...General Bancroft seemed to have it all, so why did the Castle live out the century in other hands? Cheri Dumont presents new evidence. CHERIE DUMONT AMARNA, M. Sc., is a life-long naturalist, artist, and has spent much of her professional life as a biology and chemistry science teacher for International Schools. She has worked in Mexico, Dubai, India, and Burkina Faso. She currently lives in Zagreb with her Haflinger mare and Cardigan Welsh Corgi.