In 1909, Carrie Rosenbacher, widow of Sigmund Rosenbacher, purchased and built a house upon this property on W. Fifth Street; the following year, she and her children, Alladin, Fannie, Otto, and Sandel Rosenbacher were listed at this location in the city directory. The Rosenbachers were associated with Rosenbacher and Brothers, a successful clothing store in Winston. The Rosenbacher family retained ownership of the property until 1975.
The Rosenbacher House is associated with Winston's phenomenal growth period from the late 1880s through the 1920s, as tobacco and textile manufacturing reached new levels of production, ultimately leading Winston-Salem to become North Carolina's largest city. This economic growth had spin-off effects to other commercial enterprises, and enabled some of the city's citizens, such as the Rosenbachers, to build handsome residences in the most prominent and formal architectural styles of the period.
Standing atop a terraced lawn overlooking W. Fifth Street, the Rosenbacher House is one of the grandest Neo-Classical Revival dwellings in Winston-Salem and is one of only a few examples of the style in the West End neighborhood. The large two-story weather-boarded house is dominated by a monumental two-story central portico with Corinthian columns and a full pedimented entablature.
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Drawing of the Rosenbacher House, Date Unknown
Courtesy of the Forsyth County
Historic Resources Commission's Files |
Enhancing the Classical design of the façade are one-story curved porches with Ionic columns, turned balustrades, and modillioned cornices which run from the portico to the front corners of the house. At second-story height, a modillioned cornice encircles the house beneath the truncated hip roof. The fenestration of the house is exceptional with the central entrance boasting double-leaf doors and leaded, beveled glass sidelights and fanlight transom. Additionally, the large front and side windows of the first story have beautiful round and segmental-arched leaded glass transoms.
Once the Rosenbacher House was no longer a single-family residence, it served as home to a number of commercial enterprises, including an antique shop and a restaurant.
Today the Rosenbacher House is privately owned and currently the Winston-Salem office of Lexington based commercial builder LMI. |
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Local Preservation Advocates Win Top State Preservation Awards
R. Michael Leonard of Bethania and Heather Fearnbach of Winston-Salem have received the top awards presented annually by Preservation North Carolina ...Fearnbach, the author of "Winston-Salem's Architectural Heritage," received the Robert E. Stipe Professional Award, the organization's highest honor to working professionals who demonstrate an outstanding commitment to preservation as part of their job responsibilities ... The awards were presented Sept. 18 during Preservation North Carolina's annual conference in Salisbury. Also honored during the conference were Joe and Jodi Williams for the restoration of the Rosenbacher House at 848 W. Fifth St., and the external restoration of Korner's Folly in Kernersville ... read more |
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The Rosebacher House gets a visit from a former resident
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Mrs. Peggy Rosenbacher Tager |
The former Ms. Peggy Rosenbacher, her dad was Sandell Rosebacher, grew up in the house as a child. She remembered living there as a child, her grandmother and the help that worked in the house. When she heard that we were revamping the Rosenbacher house, she contacted us by email and as far as we know she is the only living descendant of the Rosenbacher family and the Rosenbacher Stores.
She stopped by once during construction to see the progress and she commented that she had never seen the floors sanded and refinished and excited about the progress of the house. She stayed in touch with us by email and when the Forsyth Historical Kick Off event was being held at the Rosenbacher house we contacted her to see if she would like be a special guest at the event and she was very excited. She came with one of her sons and toured the completed renovation. We got to spend time with her and she told us many old stories of the house. One in particular being, she remembered her grandmother sitting in the dining room and she would tap the button in the floor (showed us the spot still there) and that was to signal the help that she wanted tea or coffee.
She now resides in Greensboro and her family still operate a custom clothing shop. Following in generations past they continued in the clothing industry.
Joe and Jodi were excited to have her attend and tell them stories and to hear how please she was with the restoration progress and how we would take care of the house in the future and keep it preserved. |
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