Menlo Castle was owned for most of its existence by the Blake family and destroyed by fire in 1910. The family coachman, James Kirwan, escaped the flames by climbing down from his window on ivy vines. He tried to rescue the other inhabitants, but young Eleanor Blake perished in the fire, as did a maid who leapt to her death. Since the day the castle was ruined, that same green hanging ivy has grown to cover the entire building.

Visiting Menlo is a fairy-tale experience, as the vines camouflage the building in the natural landscape of the surrounding woods and fields. It is not known when the castle was first built, but it was primarily a domestic rather than military use. Large round towers and a former pier that held a cannon and telescope provided security for the inhabitants.