The Castle, 2022
The history of the Gingerbread Castle and Wheatsworth Mill Factory first begins with the creation of the Milk Bone dog biscuit. Frederick H. Bennett and his brother Thomas Bennett created the business, the F.H. Bennett Baking Company in 1907 which created the Milk Bone dog biscuit in 1908. Their original bakery was in Manhattan which produced a variety of crackers and baked goods. Due to wanting to produce a graham cracker made of 100% graham flour F.H. Bennett needed a different mill than the one he was using. F. H. Bennett was able to find a mill in Hamburg, NJ that already had some history to it.
In 1808, Joseph Sharp Jr. built a stone grist mill at the location which provided the flour for the American troops of the war of 1812. In 1834 there was a fire that destroyed parts of Sharp’s original mill complex, except for the main stone building in the front. In 1840, under new ownership a new mill site was constructed in conjugation with the original. Several years later the property was sold again to Wallkill Cement and Lime Company.
On June 10, 1921, F. H. Bennett bought the mill from The Wallkill Cement and Lime Company and surrounding property, renaming it the Wheatsworth Mill Factory. During the next few years additions were added to the mill including rebuilding the millrace, adding a large grain elevator, and adding two new houses for employees. During the construction of the Wheatsworth Mill Factory F.H. Bennett Biscuit Co. changed its name to Wheatsworth, Inc. due to the success of its wheatsworth whole wheat crackers and other products.
Adjacent to the Wheatsworth Mill Factory F.H. Bennett had the idea of building a Gingerbread Castle due to his love of fairy tales from childhood. Designed by Joseph Urban, construction of the castle began in 1928 on remnants of a stone kiln that remained from the property’s previous owners. It opened in Spring of 1930. (For further details of the castle click on the pictures below)
In 1931 F.H. Bennett sold his company, including the Wheatsworth Mill Factory, to the National Biscuit Company (now Nabisco). In 1937, Canterbury Mills purchased the mill and continued to use it for baking purposes. In 1943 Plastoid Corporation purchased the factory to produce wire and use for office space, ending production of flour products. In 1977, the Gingerbread castle closed and remained unused for about ten years. In 1987, Plastoid sold the castle property to Brian Hamilton and Joseph DiFiglia who renovated it and opened it back up on July 16, 1988. Plastoid stopped their operations in 1989 and the buildings went up for sale that year. On June 4, 1993, a fire broke out that caused damage to the mill buildings and the castle interior.
In 2002 Frank Hinger purchased the castle and reception area across the street, turning it into a restaurant. Known as Frank’s Castle Grill, the restaurant also had a petting zoo in the back of it. However, Hinger was unable to reopen the Gingerbread Castle and the restaurant closed in 2005.
As of 2024 the Gingerbread Castle is owned by Don Oriolo who has been working on restoring the castle.
The pictures captured by me in this section were taken with a Canon 70D, iPhone XR, and a canon PowerShot ELPH 340 HS (12x optical zoom) on a number of visits.
https://gingerbreadcastlelibrary.com/
https://www.nj.com/news/2023/12/renovation-of-old-gingerbread-castle-imperiled-by-demolition-next-door-owner-says.html (an update on the castle)
1989 (didnt it close already by this time)
1935 Postcard
2017
2017
Click the Pictures Below to Explore the Attraction Further!
Click to See the Grounds of the Castle
Click to See Inside
Click to See More About the Wheatsworth Factory