Castle in the Clouds

Lucknow was built to make a private life possible high above Lake Winnipesaukee. Thomas and Olive Plant began creating the estate in 1913, assembling about 6,300 acres on the Ossipee Mountains. The centerpiece was a sixteen-room Arts and Crafts mansion, accompanied by stables, a garage, gatehouses, a greenhouse, a golf course, and trails. The scale suggested permanence, but the estate’s future would be shaped by the same financial risks that had accompanied Thomas Plant’s rise.

Plant had built his fortune in the shoe industry. Born in Bath, Maine, he worked from a young age and eventually became a successful manufacturer before selling his business. At Lucknow, he and Olive combined hand-crafted materials with modern conveniences, including central vacuuming, refrigeration, and an intercom system. The mansion’s restrained Arts and Crafts design contrasted with the elaborate technology behind its daily operation. A large staff maintained a property designed for comfort and self-sufficiency.