The unfinished, ruined mansion, was built by a Scottish planter called William Kellie Smith. According to differing accounts, it was either a gift for his wife or a home for his son. Kellie's Castle is symbol of love, like the Taj Mahal in Agra, India. And in the architecture, there is definitely some moghul influence visible.
History told us that the construction of this mansion began in the year 1915 during the time of the British Occupation of Malaya. Malaya has since gained independence and is now known as Malaysia. The owner, William Kellie Smith was a wealthy Scottish planter who made his fortune in Malaya by helping to construct public roads in South Perak. He then purchased 960 acres of jungle land in the district of Kinta and used it to plant rubber. Rubber was one of the commodity that was in great demand a that time. He diversified his agriculture venture by going into tin mining industry. Hence he established himself as the owner of Kinta Kellas Estate and the Kinta Kellas Tin Dredging Company. He probably chose the name Kellas as he was born on March 1, 1870 in Easter Kellas, Scotland.
As he prospered, he built his first house known as Kella's House in the estate in 1910 for his wife, Agnes Smith and their first child, Helen Agnes. This house and its ruin can still be seen today which is located just beside Kellie's Castle. What is left of the first house today is just the foundation and parts of the wall.
The second and bigger mansion, Kellies Castle construction started after the birth of his son, Anthony in 1915. He hired 70 Indians from Madras, South India as skilled labourers for the construction of the mansion. Unfortunately, midway through the construction, a deadly "Spanish flu" struck and killed many of the workers. He was advised to built a Hindu temple in the vicinity to appease the gods. Work to build the mansion continued after that but as he went home to United Kingdom in 1926, he died of pneumonia in Lisbon, Portugal at the age of 56. His wife then sold this place to a British company called Harrisons and Crosfield and return to Scotland for good.
Ground floor corridor
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