CLICK & DOUBLE CLICK: `AMERICA'S CASTLES' GIVE GLIMPSE INTO LIVES OF RICH AND FAMOUS (COLUMN 90)

Cybertip: A few spots remain in the June 8 and 17 Internet classes for beginners. The June 8 class is from 7-9 p.m. and the June 17 is from 1-3 p.m. Call 335-6611 as soon as possible to register. There is a $10 fee.

We're sorry that you didn't win the big Powerball. We didn't win either, but you can keep up the dream of joining the rich and famous by visiting castles online.

The Arts and Entertainment Network did a whole series on what they termed America's castles.

Joni: These were built by people so rich they could throw away their money. Just think of the electric bills for these houses.

Peggy: Whew! I know what the power bill is for my "castle." We're starting at a centralized Web location for these American castles, but several have their own Web sites.

www.aetv.com/castles

Joni: There area a lot of famous names here. Since we're in the newspaper business, let's start with newspaper baron William Randolph Hearst's mansion.

Peggy: It's 130-room Mediterranean Revival mansion built on 127-acres in San Simeon, Calif.

Joni: Who would want to clean 130 rooms? They started construction in 1922 and continued building until 1949. No wonder. It's huge.

Peggy: The house on a hilltop is considered one of the most lavish residences constructed in modern times. It's full of art treasures, including Greek pieces more than 2,500 years old.

Joni: For more details, check out it's own Web site

www.hearstcastle.org

Guess what? The castle has a name. All these fancy homes have their own names. The Hearst Castle is also known as "La Cuesta Encantada -- The Enchanted Hill."

Peggy: Do you think if I named my house, people would be interested in visiting? I doubt it.

Joni: They are working on two slide shows of the Hearst Castle. I wonder if this is a new site, since several things aren't operational yet.

Peggy: I bet they are working on the site for a 40th anniversary of the house. We'll check back.

Joni: Let's look at a castle in the central region. How about the Grand Hotel in Mackinac Island, Mich.? It's the world's largest summer hotel since it opened in 1887. I think I have relatives who stayed there.Peggy: No motorized vehicles are allowed on the island. All transportation is provided by horse and carriage or bicycle. Cool. The island is only accessible by ferry boat or plane.

Joni: It has 300-plus guest rooms. Let's look at their Web site.

www.grandhotel.net

Peggy: The Grand Hotel goes back to a time of horse-drawn carriages, high tea and croquet on an endless lawn.

Joni: Next on the tour is the Biltmore House in Asheville, N.C. It's 250-room French Renaissance chateau. It was built for George Washington Vanderbilt. It took hundreds of workers five years to complete. It is the largest private residence in the U.S. and remains much as it was when the Vanderbilts lived there.

Peggy: Talk about a big yard. This house sits on 8,000 acres. You could put in a small subdivision and never really notice it.

www.biltmore.com

Joni: It's magnificent. And the Web site has lots of good information about the family, construction of the house and a little history Q&A. He was 28 years old when construction began. The Vanderbilts acquired their money through steamshipping and railroading.

Peggy: Originally the estate was 125,000 acres. The estate is unique because it is completely privately owned and operated. It receives no government funding.

Joni: How many fireplaces? 65. They also link you to other sites related to the Vanderbilts. Under photography, you can find QuickTime movies of the mansion rooms. You can pan 360 degrees through the rooms, and you can zoom in and out.

Peggy: You can get a sampling of many different rooms. You can also get on the Biltmore e-mailing list. This is a wonderful site.

Joni: Next, let's visit the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, Calif. Basically, a woman, Sarah Pardee, married William Wirt Winchester, who was the son of the man who made the Winchester Repeating Rifle. He died of TB. She believed ghosts of people murdered by Winchester rifles had killed her husband.

Peggy: Legend says that spirits told her that the only way to escape the haunting was to move west, build a house and continually add on. A newsroom expert tells us ghosts won't inhabit a house that's under construction.

Joni: The house grew without plans for 38 years. It has 160 rooms with 10,000 windows and a lot of staircases that go nowhere. People kindly call it eccentric. Check out the house

www.netview.com

Peggy: You can read more about this unusual story. It says she built steadily 24 hours a day until her death in 1922.

Joni: Here's another famous name -- the du Ponts, who built Longwood Garden at Kennett Square, Penn. The property dates back to the 1700s. But in 1870, Pierre du Pont bought the estates. The gardens have breath-taking waterfalls and fountains. Find more at

www.longwoodgardens.org

Peggy: They have 20 outdoor gardens and 20 indoor gardens with 11,000 different plants. It's called the world's premiere horticulture garden and has more than 1,000 acres.

Joni: In another neck of the country, Palm Beach Fla., Henry Flagler, the co-founder of Standard Oil, built a 55-room Gilded Age estate in 1902 as a wedding present for his wife.

Peggy: At the time, the New York Herald called it the "Taj Mahal of North America." Today it's open to the public at the Flagler Museum. Visit its Web site at

www.flagler.org

Joni: These houses give you a peek into a different way of life. It's amazing.

Peggy: If I had won the big Powerball prize I probably wouldn't have spent the money on a gilded castle, but it's nice to take a look. What's your favorite castle site? E-mail us at click@semissourian.com

See you in Cyberspace.

~Peggy Scott and Joni Adams are members of the Southeast Missourian online staff.