N.J.'s old fairytale castle is getting restored thanks to a knight in shining armor

New Jersey is full of stories about places that once were hugely popular, only to fade over the years and eventually disappear.

But imagine, for a moment, if one of those long-ago attractions came back.

Would it be possible to recapture the magic?

That is the essence of what is being attempted in Hamburg at the 90-year-old Gingerbread Castle, formerly a fairy tale-themed playground.

Don Oriolo bought the empty castle in 2017, undeterred by at least two failed efforts to recapture its prior glory, and is slowly bringing it back to life. The structure has been stabilized and Humpty Dumpty’s busted legs have been fixed.

“My family was in the entertainment business, so it seemed like a natural fit,” said Oriolo, whose grandfather helped create “Casper the Friendly Ghost” in the 1930s and later the “Felix the Cat” TV series.

His vision is for a 21st Century version of the castle, perhaps with some interactive flourishes, bolstered by festivals and other events.

There was a time when the Gingerbread Castle was among the biggest attractions in Sussex County. Actors portraying Hansel and Gretel brought visitors inside, 15 at a time, to marvel at statues depicting Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater, the birds baked in a pie from “Sing a Song of Sixpence,” the flying witch on a broom, and others.

Dan Barr vividly recalls his first visit, at age 4 in the mid-1960s, and marveling during subsequent visits at the “witch’s brew” from Hansel and Gretel (Spoiler alert: The witch unsuccessfully tried to cook them).

“It was a fascinating place for a little kid,” said Barr, Hamburg’s acting historian and a former member of the council.

By the late 1970s, though, the thrills were fading. The Gingerbread Castle closed - it reopened for a couple of years in the late 1980s - and after that was used only for special events, such as a haunted house around Halloween.

The castle’s decline saddened many, but especially Robert Allen.

Allen was born in 1928, the year construction began on the castle, and he lived across the street from it as a child.

“I was 10 years old, and I went berserk when I saw that thing,” said Allen, now 91 and living in Franklin.

There was a small train ride not far from from the castle - nothing fancy by today’s standards, but epic back in the day. Allen said it cost 25 cents per ride.

“The kids went bananas on that thing,” Allen said.

Allen has been volunteering technical guidance to Oriolo’s restoration project. Restoring the castle to its former glory, and seeing young children enjoy it as he once did, remains his dream.

Allen said he visited the castle “all the time” as a child, and felt like he “was in the most important place that anyone could be."

Barr shares his nostalgia for the castle.

“As a little kid, I was terrified of Little Miss Muffet, with a giant spider coming down,” he said.

But Barr also acknowledged that his memories were formed in a much simpler time, when the sophistication of children’s entertainment was nowhere near what it is today.

“We had to wait a year, every year, to watch the 'Wizard of Oz," and we looked forward to it. Today, kids can watch any movie, any show, any time - on their phone," Barr said.

It is possible to interest children accustomed to video games, laser tag and other attractions in anything like the Gingerbread Castle?

Barr isn’t sure, but is optimistic.

“If anyone can do it, Don is a very creative guy,” he added.

Oriolo got an unusual introduction to the castle two decades ago. His father, also named Don Oriolo, is an artist, musician and writer, but perhaps best-known for shepherding his grandfather’s “Felix the Cat” into an international branding powerhouse.

The elder Oriolo was executive producer of “Campfire Stories,” a 2001 horror movie that starred “Sopranos” actress Jamie-Lynn Sigler and filmed in part near the Gingerbread Castle.

He gave his son, too young to have experienced the castle in is heyday, a bit part in the movie.

“A nice little connection there,” said Don Oriolo, who recalled seeing photos of his grandfather and father, along with an aunt and an uncle, at the Gingerbread Castle.

On the second to last Friday of 2019, Oriolo invited a reporter inside the castle as the sun was setting. A spiral staircase with steps caked in ice led to a door, and then the main portion of the castle where the restored wishing well extends to the dungeon room.

There was not a lot to see.

“Two owners before me, who lost it originally to foreclosure, had stripped the place of just about everything you could,” he said.

An original, stained-glass window - Oriolo said he plans to replicate it for elsewhere in the castle - was visible in the room. So, too, were stone design features attributed to architect Joseph Urban, who in addition to designing the castle helped create Mar-a-Largo, today known as President Donald Trump’s resort, in Florida.

Outside the castle, Humpty Dumpty was back on his wall, his legs repairs and freshly painted. A large shoe - from the tale, “there once was an old woman who lived in a shoe" - was prominent near the rear of the one-acre property.

Oriolo’s efforts are drawing much interest in Hamburg, which is home to about 3,000 and continues to embrace the empty castle as its signature attraction.

In 2013, two decades after it closed, borough officials installed “Welcome to Hamburg” signs, on Route 23 and Route 94, proclaiming it the home of the Gingerbread Castle.

Barr said some street names - King Cole Street, Prince Street, Cinderella Street, and Wishing Well Street - were inspired by the castle.

Urban Street is named for the castle’s architect. The castle itself is located on Gingerbread Castle Road.

Oriolo spoke of hosting festivals on the grounds, and having craft and art sales, maybe bringing in bands for performances.

“They basically had Hansel and Gretel bring a small group of kids and parents through the castle and just tell nursery rhymes. I think, probably, we’ll do something a little bit extra, more interactive stuff. We’re going to add to the experience,” he said.

He said he envisions it as “basically what it was, an entertainment place for families and kids - but I’d like to cater to older people as well.”

“It’ll be a more modern experience, so they’ll be more to do,” he said.

In the meantime, Humpty Dumpty waits on his wall.

This article is part of “Unknown New Jersey,” an ongoing series that highlights interesting and little-known stories about our past, present, and future -- all the unusual things that make our great state what is it. Got a story to pitch? Email it to local@njadvancemedia.com.

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Rob Jennings may be reached at rjennings@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @RobJenningsNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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