Amy Strong Castle and Windmill Tower at Mount Woodson (1927)

A sprawling granite stone castle with Spanish tile roofs, arched entryways, and a wooden windmill tower at the foot of boulder-strewn Mount Woodson. — Amy Strong Castle and Windmill Tower at Mount Woodson (1927) · Donald A. Hall Estate Collection

During an excursion into the backcountry of San Diego County in 1927, Donald A. Hall Sr. documented the historic Amy Strong Castle (Mt. Woodson Castle) in Ramona, California. Designed by architects Emmor Brooke Weaver and John Terrell Vawter for dress designer Amy Strong, the 27-room Craftsman estate was hand-built from native granite boulders harvested from the slopes of Mount Woodson. The composition captures the residence's multi-gabled tile roof, stone retaining walls, and distinctive wooden windmill tower that pumped spring water to redwood storage tanks.