An old Midwest diner shaped like a white castle is now listed on the market for free, but there's a catch and the burger chain White Castle wants to help.
Whoever claims the former burger stand will need to move it off the Kansas property it's currently on.
“A castle-shaped 1930s-era portable metal diner that years ago was home to a Wichita burger stand on East Douglas but that has been hidden on a rural property in Butler County for decades could find new life if moved," the listing via Cheap Old Houses states.
The "pre-fab diner" was built by Ablah Hotel Supply sometime between 1934 and 1935 and is believed to have once housed what was known as the Little Palace Lunch No. 1 or the Continental Grill No. 2.
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"This is the only definite Ablah Hotel Supply castle-shaped diner survivor and is in remarkable shape," the listing states. "It's an important building both from an architectural and a roadside Americana standpoint."
The building was moved to it's current location via a crane and will take "some significant logistics and money to move off of the property."
Owner Ada Sutherland said the property had been listed originally in 2019 and had a "handful of interested parties" but when COVID hit shortly after, the interest quickly faded.
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"Although it's a charming oddity in need of a lot of TLC, we feel the diner has historical significance that warrants the search to find it a new home," Sutherland told NBC Chicago. "Ideally its next owners would carry on its legacy in a public space that brings joy to others, wherever that may be. While we don't have the personal passion needed to bring this diner back to life, we're more than confident after just a few days of interfacing with interested parties that this time our search will yield the perfect match."
And now, White Castle is joining the mission to help.
The company said it believes the home was modeled "directly after early White Castles that started the fast-food industry in 1921." Because of that, White Castle said it will invest in the relocation if the building becomes a museum or is obtained by a group "seeking to preserve this building."
“As the ones to start it all 102 years ago, our family business would like to do our part to preserve this history and source of good memories,” Jamie Richardson, vice president at White Castle and fourth-generation family member, said in a statement.
The chain said that while the building's facade harkens to White Castle's signature look, "descendants of White Castle’s founder Billy Ingram have confirmed this particular diner was not a genuine White Castle."
“We can confirm that this was not a White Castle,” Richardson said. “Nevertheless, we have great reverence for all that the fast-food industry has done to serve up hot, tasty and affordable food across generations, and this building is a part of that important history.”
Those who are interested in the building are being asked to contact adasuth15@gmail.com.
For any museums or historical societies looking to secure White Castle's help, the company has set up a "historic preservation hotline" at (614) 559-2687.
"Should their joint proposal be selected by the current owners, White Castle will invest in transporting the building to its final destination," the company said.
Sutherland said a number of inquiries have been received "from nearly every state, as well as one as far away as the Bahamas." The interested parties include "everyone from restaurant and bar owners, preservationists, hobbyists, historians, artist co-ops, CEOs, HGTV stars, and everything you can imagine in between."
"The excitement people have is wild. We're just happy to be a part of this diners next chapter," Sutherland said.
See images of the inside below:
