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Further north in Hamburg, Gingerbread Castle becomes more incongruous every time we visit. At the start it was a flour mill, then it became something called Plastoid Corporation, then the Gingerbread Castle was built hanging off one of the factory walls. Then the owners built life-size dinosaurs across the street, then they opened a disco whose drunk patrons now vandalize the dinosaurs, then they closed down the Castle and turned the whole place into a Dahmer-style Halloween attraction ("Haunted Castle"), complete with human corpse haunches, eviscerated bodies, and several dozen live actors.

For those who can't make it to the Castle by Halloween, we still recommend a visit. If previous years are any indicator, the spook house debris will be left standing for months afterward, making for striking photo-ops of post-apocalyptic carnage...

CREDITS: UNKNOWN

June 2004: Gingerbread Castle has been sold, and the new owner, Frank Hinger, intends to restore it. What will happen remains to be seen, since he's trying to solicit donations from the public, "So generations to come can enjoy what you once enjoyed as a child."

I stopped by what's left of the Gingerbread Castle last summer and it definitely wasn't open, but I found out some info from the Hamburg Historical Society to incorporate into an article for the Society of Commercial Archaeology (SCA). Not sure where things stand now, but here's a brief update as of last fall:

After operating as a children's fairy tale theme park for nearly 50 years, Gingerbread Castle finally closed in the late 1970s. It reopened for a few years as a haunted Halloween venue before a fire closed it permanently in 1993 [RA: It was still running a seasonal haunted attraction on the property in 1997]. Attempts to restore the castle as a children's theme park hadn't gotten far. NJ resident Frank Hinger and his wife Lou purchased the property in 2003 with plans to revitalize it, even securing a grant from Hampton Hotels Save-a-Landmark program in 2004, which was used to repaint the castle exterior. But raising additional funds proved difficult. After unsuccessfully offering the castle on eBay, it was auctioned off by sheriffs sale in January 2007 for approximately $680,000.

As of fall 2008, local real estate developers Gene Mulvihill and Pat Barton were the Gingerbread Castle's current owners. Mulvihill, who owns the neighboring former Plastoid building and a share in nearby Ballyowen, the states highest-rated public golf course, seemed interested in preserving the castle. In a January 2007 article in the New Jersey Herald, Mulvihill states, "It's in (Hamburg's) blood. We're not going to rip the place down, that's not going to happen. Not going to happen."

CREDITS: Roadside America

The walls are made of ginger-bread (your imagination tells you so), the roof of frosted sugar. Candy cane towers and cake icing turrets, animal cracker handrails and a plum pudding grille were once a thrill at the Gingerbread Castle. Its once appearance of being lifted from an Enchanted Forest where Hansel and Gretel stumbled on in an old fairy tale. Opened in early 1930's, The Gingerbread Castle is where dreams came to life, and Hansel and Gretel awaited to take every child and grown -up through this exciting adventure. The Gingerbread Castle recaptured the spirit of childhood and provided all visitors, young and old, with a momentary glimpse back into an almost forgotten memories. Based on Grimm Brothers collection of German Folk tales published in 1812, the Gingerbread Castle featured most of the character known to children regardless of nationality or color. Visitors were led by Hansel and Gretel through the Gingerbread castle while they recited the fairy tales connected with each display. Some of the favorites were Humpty-Dumpty perched atop his famous wall, Prince Charming astride his prancing charger, the Spitting Black Cat standing guard over the castle up high up in the turret and the Wise Old Owl watching every move with unblinking yellow eyes. The tour led past the strange abode of the Old Lady Who Lived In A Shoe, and down the dank stairs to the dungeon like cellar of the castle the Witch's Trophy Room then up a winding staircase to the Main Hall of the castle where Hansel and Gretel pointed out the gingerbread cookies studding the walls, the peppermint sticks, and the windows composed of multi-colored candles. Your were then directed to the little alcoves off the main hall which contained figures depicting heroines from various fairy tales. Miss Muffet's spider suspended from a single thread from his huge web high up in the turret of the castle. An awesome pit covered with a plum pudding grille; an evil witch astride her broom ready to flee from reproachful eyes and the witch's evil kitchen where a big black cauldron contains the bones of the hapless children trapped in her lair and cooked alive ! Hansel and Gretel then lead you out through a narrow door into a landing high up in the battlements and down a brick stairway past animal cracker balustrades formed by elephants. A look on high you could see the black seal perched on a peppermint stick balancing a big orange ball on his nose. The tours would lead you back over to the reception area where you could take a train ride on the grounds! The Gingerbread Castle was truly a place where dreams came true.

Today the Gingerbread Castle is in the hands of a notorious developer in the Hamburg area. Frank lost in in foreclosure in early 2007. We know Frank's efforts were not in vain. Thank you Frank, your heart was true. Hopes are now it is not destroyed and can live on and be restored to its intended purpose. The Gingerbread Castle is one of Josephs Urbans last projects completed before his passing./center>