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The world tallest treehouse, located in Crossville,
Tennessee, makes the Swiss Family Robinsons look like a bunch of
amateurs - but that might be because it was commissioned by God.
The 1960 Disney film about a family shipwrecked on an island, features
an impressive treehouse complete with its own water mill.
But the Robinson's home pales in significance next to this structure,
which took builder Horace Burgess 11 years to build.
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Horace, who lives in the 10 story wooden house, said he begun the build
in 1993 after he received a vision from God, who said he would never run
out of materials if he built it.
The enormous treehouse is a whopping 10,000 square feet but only cost
Horace a reasonable $12,000 thanks to his thrifty use of recycled
materials.
Inside there are spiral staircases, a sanctuary, a choir loft, a
basketball court, and countless rooms, walkways and balconies.
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These photos were taken by photographer Tom Whetton, 63, on March 15,
this year.
He said: 'The treehouse is incredibly impressive.
'You can't really appreciate the scale until you are standing next to it
but it is absolutely huge.
'I was told that the whole thing is supported by just six trees and that
Horace used 258,000 nails to put everything together.
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'This house is every kids dream. Even I wanted to go inside and
explore.'
Horace is remarkably forgiving, but even he has his limits. The tree
house, although still open, is now watched 24/7 to prevent any further
destruction. Horace plans to build a Welcome Booth where all visitors
will sign waivers so that they no longer have to trespass.
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The long-delayed Phase 2 of the tree house will include an elevator,
power, plumbing, heat in the winter, and a fitness-testing "Stairway to
Heaven" that will twist all the way up to the belfry.
"It's only started, really," Horace said of the tree house. "I want to
go back and finish what it looks like in my head."
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