“The greatest piece of originality ever brought about in the
history of man.”
George
Daynor
While
visiting our home state of New Jersey this past December, we went to
visit my brother, Howard and his wife, Linda in Elmer. Howard said,
“I have something I have to show you that I think you will like”.
He knows Joe and I enjoy seeing unusual things so off we drive
through beautiful South Jersey back country roads and past acres of
farmlands. This part of New Jersey still seems the same as when we
were children which is such a blessing. It is so beautiful. “Here
it is”, he said.
Off
to the side of South Mill Road in Vineland stood the unusual
building. “That is what is known as ‘The Palace of Depression’
also known as, ‘The Strangest House in the World’ or ‘The Home
of Junk.’” I told him I had heard about this place before by
reading “Atlas Obscura” and in fact, had just read about it the
other day while looking for things to see nearby while we were home.
How amazing and wonderful that we ended up here in Vineland, New
Jersey known as the Dandelion capitol of the world, the birthplace of
Welch’s Grape Juice, and of course, this amazing place – The
Palace of Depression.
There
is a big sign up on the front of a property that states it is a
reconstruction site and it was roped off with signs stating “No
Trespassing.” I stayed behind the ropes and only took pictures of
this “Palace” from the road. What a shame it was not open. The
story of this place and the man who created it, is quite remarkable.
An
extraordinary man named George Daynor, an Alaska gold miner did well
for himself until the Wall Street Crash of 1929. He lost everything
but $4.00. He was in despair when he stated an angel came him and
told him his destiny was to move to New Jersey. He bought four
acres of land sight unseen for $4.00. When he arrived in Vineland, he
found he had bought swampland with a junk yard with lots of old
vehicles. He couldn’t believe it. That night he curled up in the
back of one of the trucks feeling defeated and fell fast asleep. The
angel reappeared to him telling him he must build the palace and gave
him the design for his home.
Yes,
old George Daynor was a character for sure. He started building just
from the supplies that were in his junkyard and built a pastel
colored palace that had eighteen spires in the swamp. If you
looked at the walls of his house you may see unusual things like
tools, car parts, and bottles. He literally made a palace out of
nothing which inspired many people during The Great Depression.
He
put some very unique features in his home like a well that he called
the wishing well equipped with a mermaid, a Jersey Devil den with
iron gate, and a knock out room where he stated he could help you
remove bad memories by dropping a lead ball on your head. The lead
ball was attached by a rope and he would demonstrate how it was used
to tourist. He ate what was on the property while building his
home, which was frogs, fish, rabbit, and squirrels so he didn’t go
hungry.
After
this eccentric man completed building his palace, including a ticket
booth on Christmas Day in 1932, he started giving tours of his
property. At first he charged ten cents to view the property and
later increased the price up to twenty five cents. He enjoyed giving
the tours and loved all the publicity. It was stated he was the
most photographed man in the world during this time. For a time,
this became a popular tourist trap. So many curious people came to
see this fairyland structure.
When
his sales declined, he came up with an insane Daynor idea to get more
publicity. When the baby, Peter Weinberger was kidnapped on July 4,
1956, he told the FBI agents they had stopped by his home. The FBI
researched the claim and found it to be false. Daynor was sent to
prison for a year. Then in another instance, his property was
thought to be linked with the disappearance of Ebenezer Jones III in
1962. They dug up the grounds but found nothing. Both events
brought much publicity to Old George.
This
brilliant, crazy, hairy faced man in his later years was known to
wear lipstick and rouge. He was known to take his baths in the creek
behind the palace and many a times tourist would stop and he would
gladly jump out of the creek, wrap a towel around him, and give them
a tour dressed in a towel. He thought himself to be a genius and
offered his brain to the Smithsonian Institute while he was alive
which they declined. Thank God.
George
Daynor died without a cent to his name in 1964 at the age of 104.
The town of Vineland buried him in the potters field of the Oak Hill
Cemetery and paid for his headstone. After his death vandals did
damage to his home and then a suspicious fire burnt it down in 1967.
Restoration
of this property started in 1998 by Kevin Kirchner, who used to visit
this property with his father as a child. He stated it always gave
him the creeps but he felt drawn to bring it back to life. In
2001, he started restoring the palace building with many volunteers,
as it was built by George only with a few more building codes in
place. It doesn’t look as ornate as it is without spires at this
time. “I’ve been watching this property being built for years
and really didn’t know anything about it. It really is something
to see.”
Kirchner
included the same basement level (Jersey Devil Den) which he included
a life size Jersey Devil just as Daynor had when he built the house.
The main floor was his office and includes a large fireplace and
then the top floor was added and that is where Daynor slept. The
only thing that is original is the ticket booth on the side of the
house. They have now added the Dr. Frank DeMaio History Center
which is a period museum. The hours are not regular yet as there
is still more work to be done but you can contact them at:
Thepalaceofdepression@comcast.net
and they will try to accommodate a tour for you.
Go and check out some of New Jerseys unique sites and enjoy. Till
next time. Bye for now.
“The
only real depression is a depression of the individual ingenuity.”
George
Daynor
*I
found my information on this historic property mainly from Wikipedia
and got many of my facts from the New Jersey Grassroots Art
Organization and the Vineland Historical Society.
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