Körner's Folly 125th Celebration - 2005

Salisbury Post, July 7-14, 2005

On Saturday, April 2, Korner’s Folly began its 125th anniversary celebration with grand opening ceremonies and a day of festivities including a Grand Masquerade/Period Costume Ball.

Kernersville landmark celebrates 125th anniversary this year By Katie Scarvey Salisbury Post

KERNERSVILLE -- It's billed as the strangest house in the world.

Open for tours, the Victorian-era home known as Körner's Folly is perhaps better described as wonderfully quirky rather than strange. However you describe it, the home provides a fascinating look into the time period and the mind of its creator, Jule Körner.

Under the name of Reuben Rink, Körner helped make Bull Durham a household word with the ads he painted across the South.

Körner built a brick structure on Main Street in Kernersville to serve as his bachelor quarters and as office space for his interior design business. It was also a place for him to showcase his designs -- which explains the rich variety and eccentricity of the home's architectural accents and furnishings.

Although it was never intended to be a permanent residence, Körner's Folly nevertheless ended up as the Körner family home.

As the unconventional house began to slowly take shape, a local farmer reportedly remarked, "That will surely be Körner's folly." When Körner heard the statement repeated, he embraced it and even had the name set in tile outside the house.

The house was completed in 1880, but it continued to change and evolve over the years as Körner's family grew and he continued to use the house as a catalog for his clients.

The house started with 11 rooms on three floors. By the time Körner died, there were 22 rooms on seven different levels. Some of the ceilings are as high as 25 feet; others, designed on a scale to please his children, are less than 6 feet. No two doorways are alike, and each of the 15 fireplaces uses a different kind of art tile.

The floor tile was laid in many areas to look like throw rugs. The craftsman who installed the tile reportedly lived in the Körners' home for the more than two years it took for him to complete the intricately designed floors and porch.

Before you enter the front door, you will see the Witches' Corner. Visitors would throw coins there, with the idea that evil spirits would be attracted to shiny things outside the house and not be tempted to enter inside.

While visitors may need to stoop to tour the children's bedrooms, the lavishly appointed reception room, with its columns, mirrors and statues, exudes grandeur and spaciousness. It also boasts whimsical "courting corners," nooks hidden from view where lovers could steal some private moments behind silk curtains.

After Körner took a bride in 1886, the stables that were originally part of the house were moved across the street at his wife's request. Alice Körner was also responsible for the top level being converted to a little theatre, one of the home's highlights.

Originally the billiard room, the theatre area features gorgeous frescoes of cherubs, which have been wonderfully restored. This area of the house was open to the children of the Kernersville community, who were offered artistic enrichment there by the Körners. The space was also used to hold dances.

The theatre is used today by the Kernersville Little Theatre, which stages dramas there every fall. Monthly family puppet shows are also performed in the space.

By the 1970s, the house had sat vacant for about 30 years and had fallen into disrepair. The home was often broken into by vagrants, who stripped its elaborate furniture of its decorative hardware. Fortunately, most of the furniture survives because it was so large that it couldn't be absconded with. Many of the pieces Körner designed were built on site and are so massive that they would not fit through doorways.

The home was close to being condemned when a group of 26 families got together in the early 1970s, each contributing about $1,000 to save the piece of Kernersville history.

"We're really lucky that these families had the foresight to do that," says Connie Martin, executive director of the Körner's Folly Foundation.

When the house was rescued, moisture had already damaged the structure. Since then, the home has been stabilized and a heating and air-conditioning system has been installed. Plenty remains to be done, however.

It has been estimated that to completely restore the house will cost $15 million to $18 million, says Martin, who adds that a capital campaign is in the offing.

"We're hoping to start major work soon," Martin says.

While the home doesn't quite reflect its former glory -- yet -- it's well worth a visit.