Driving through the backstreets of New Boston, Michigan, you may not think anything of it—lots of land and family homes. However, along the Huron River, hidden behind trees and greenery, is a large white gate that you can’t miss, which reads “Buena Vista.” This pink, exotic mini-castle is one of Metro Detroit’s hidden gems with years of mystery and rumors behind it. Some theories include that this was built by Henry Ford for his child, or possibly his mistress. People theorize it was later occupied by the “Banana King,” satanists, and ghosts. I met with the Pink Castle’s newest owner, Joe Richart, to learn more about this curious property.

Richart first heard about this property when he was a child growing up in Huron Township, as well as the stories behind it, but was met with an incredible opportunity in the early 1980’s. The property was for sale, and Richart got to see it for himself. “I fell in love with it and was going to make an offer, and they pulled it off the market.” He ended up buying the property next to it, but always admired his neighboring castle. When the owner of nearly 80 years had passed, he was concerned that the 14-and-a-half acres of land along the Huron River would be developed, and the historical home would be demolished. This is when Richart made an offer and became the proud owner of the Pink Castle earlier this year.

This isn’t Richart’s first historic renovation. In 2016, he purchased the Great Lakes Manor, renovated it, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2020. The nearly century-old building was very important to the Black community and now remains a cultural landmark of Detroit. He also purchased a historic building in downtown New Boston, once known as Gibbs, in 2019, and named it Doc’s after Richart’s late father, Dr. Joseph J. Richert, Sr. Overcoming challenges and adversity through the pandemic, Richart transformed the property into a thriving ice cream parlor and coffee shop.

The Pink Castle renovation, however, is by far his most “controversial.” To Richart’s knowledge, the house was built in the early 1940’s by Henry Ford. Some speculate it was for one of Ford’s mistresses, but she supposedly already had a home built for her on the Rouge River, upstream from Ford’s home in Dearborn.

Richart told me another theory he had heard since buying the property: “I was told by the second owner’s granddaughter that Harry Bennett used it to house Canadian ‘bad guys’ that were brought in to fight against the early unionization of the company.” Harry Bennett was infamously Henry Ford’s head of security and had a history of fighting against unionization for Ford, so this theory is very plausible.

What is confirmed is that when Henry Ford listed the home for sale, “Banana King” Felix Rhymes moved in and famously lived on the property. Rhymes was a troubleshooter for the Standard Fruit Company, now known as Dole. He had a hard time convincing the company to import bananas from South America to the United States because they grew in such large bunches, so Rhymes suggested breaking them down into smaller bunches for sale. The idea was a success, and he became the largest importer of bananas in the United States. Rhymes sold them through the Eastern Market in Detroit. The estate was named by Rhymes. Spanish for “good view,” Buena Vista is what he called his wife, and the estate was named after her.

After Rhymes, the estate was given to his daughter and her family. The family was very private, and with an estate that eclectic in the middle of farmland and suburbia, people’s minds began to wander. When asked if he had heard any rumors, Richart responded, “I’ve heard that there was Satanic worship here, you know- your imagination is unlimited, so there were a lot of crazy stories about that.” Stories of murder, hauntings, evil, and more surrounded the Pink Castle’s legacy for years, which led to a lot of trespassers.

Harry Lefferts, a man who trespassed on the property in the early 1990’s, spoke with me about his experience. He explained that he was with some friends at a school event, and someone had asked if he and his friends had ever been to the Pink Castle. “Nobody knew what it was but a couple of people in the group; they heard there was a cult there that worships the devil. They also said people have been killed there. Stories of large fires in the middle where you do weird stuff around it.” With his curiosity piqued, Lefferts and his friends snuck on the property where they were met with something disturbing, but not in a way they expected: “a man with a sawed-off shotgun running at us saying he was going to kill us.”

Needless to say, this didn’t help disprove any rumors. “While this guy held us at gunpoint, an elevated chassis truck with big spotlights on top comes flying into the field and starts doing donuts about 20-30 yards from us. A couple other people had come out... hard to see what was in their hands, but it was either guns, bats, or clubs.” The cops soon arrived and took Lefferts and his friends to jail but stressed that they were “lucky they didn’t get killed there” and that “a lot of bad stuff happens there.” Lefferts and his friends were charged with trespassing and never went back.

Many of the outlandish rumors such as Satanic worship and murder are unlikely. Richart explained, “I think what it was, was it was owned by a couple who had one child and were very private and didn’t want to be bothered, and yet they lived in a home that everyone wanted to see.” However, since the property is now under Richart’s ownership, he welcomes curiosity and visitors. He has had no issues with trespassers and loves to share the home with people: “I invite them in all the time because I want people to see it; it’s cool, it’s different.”

Although Richart is unsure what the Pink Castle’s end goal will be (Airbnb, wedding venue, art gallery), he expressed “I just want to continue to restore it and preserve it.” He believes renovations will probably continue until the end of 2025. He looks forward most to reopening an underground tunnel that extends from the basement of the castle into the Huron River, about 40 feet long. He remains open to ideas from locals to find the best purpose for this property in a way where it can benefit and support the community.

To follow Richart’s restoration journey and the Pink Castle, you can find updates on the YouTube channel, “The Pink Castle Restoration Project.”