American couple details their elaborate plans to renovate $1.25M Knockderry Castle in Scotland after previous owner was bankrupted and evicted

A husband and wife from Utah are documenting the renovation journey of the £1.25 million Knockderry Castle.

David and Chelom Leavitt paid £1.15 million for the castle located in Argyll, Scotland, and have acquired a following on TikTok and their blogsite as they detail and execute their remodeling plans.

The castle was originally designed by Alexander Thomson in the 1850s for James Templeton, a textile manufacturer. When John Templeton, a carpet manufacturer took over ownership, he commissioned William Leiper to make some Baronial additions to the estate.

'I said this before we bought the castle, and I can say it with a whole lot more authority now; if we wanted turn-key castle - one that was already done - we could have gotten that for a lot less money than we're spending' David said in a TikTok video alongside his wife. 'But that's not what its about.'  

Before the Utah couple purchased Knockderry, the castle was previously owned by Marian Van Overwaele, who went bankrupt in 2000. She made several appeals against eviction, but after a 22-year legal battle, the businesswoman was evicted.

For over a decade, Chelom said her and her husband's goal was to find an castle that needed some major TLC and 'make it come alive.'

After tirelessly searching for the castle they wanted to make their new project, the Leavitt's found Knockderry's serene environment to be a perfect fit, referring to it as their 'temple of peace.'

'I think we both knew it was a very special place,' said Chelom.

The Knockderry castle has four reception rooms, several bedrooms and bathrooms, and a separate cottage, all of which overlook the scenic Loch Long.

Cow step gables, turrets, stone balustrades, and a wood-paneled drawing room with vintage fireplaces, paneling, and stained glass windows are just a few of the property's remarkable original features.

The couple has commissioned a team of brothers to help with the project management and restoration. Their first order of business was to tear out the carpets on all levels to prepare for more substantial renovations.

They also stripped and gutted the basement and the kitchen to inspect the timbers for wood rot, followed by calling specialized suspension rope climbers to repair parts of the roof that are not easy to reach.

The Leavitts hired a stain glass conservation expert to learn and understand what options they have for preserving some of the original windows in the house. They also are waiting or government approval to install heating systems in the castle.

After a consultation with another conservationist, the couple also plan to furnish the empty room that was once the library, restoring it back to its original purpose. A survey has been scheduled to inspect the castle's water-powered hydraulic elevator to see if it can be fixed.

Before making the castle his full time job, David was a prosecutor known for his efforts to extradite Nicholas Rossi, a US fugitive who faked his own death to avoid rape charges

Rossi traveled to Scotland after attempting to stage his own death. Extradition procedures were initiated after he was found in the Covid department of a Glasgow hospital in December 2021.

Between being involved in the Knockderry castle acquisition and a high profile lawsuit, David and his wife have lived to tell many tales.

'I don't know what to make of it except that sometimes life is stranger than fiction,' David told the BBC.

The Leavitts, whose private wealth mainly comes from their family' s insurance firm, said they are not sure when the castle will be completely done.

'It's going to take a number of years,' David said. 'The way we're approaching this is that we're not going to do a half-baked job on the restoration but we're not going to make it the Taj Mahal either.'