CityView Magazine

Fine Living Below | Ann or Annie? Ann Highsmith often plays Annie Kyle, daughter of the landmark home on Green Street. The Kyle House is the fi rst stop on the annual Historic Hauntings Tour. It’s said that Annie’s father, James Kyle, is a still ghostly presence after all these years. Philadelphia in the 1800s. He operated a mercantile business where the First Citizens Bank Building is now located. The building, known today as the Kyle House, was built in the 1850s. architect, Using designs by a Philadelphia James Kyle hired northern One of the city’s most beloved landmarks has a haunting history By Eddie Dees classic architectural style – and its ghost. James Kyle, a prosperous Scottish E merchant, built the elegant home on Green Street. Legend has it that Kyle was proud of his home and it is his spirit that continues to help care for it today. The Kyle House is the first stop on the Dogwood Festival’s Historic Hauntings Tour, a haunted hayride that explores the eerie encounters and mysterious happenings of downtown Fayetteville’s chilling past. Tour dates are Oct. 16-18 and 23-25. 30 | Oct • Nov 2008 very autumn, when the temperature and the leaves begin to fall, locals look and listen for sights and sounds at one of Fayetteville’s most famous structures. The Kyle House is well known for its historical importance, its According to surviving descendants still living in Fayetteville, Kyle took issue with his widowed daughter, Annie, when she began taking in boarders. To show his displeasure, his spirit began wandering up and down the stairs – perhaps searching for the unwelcome guests. It is a search, some say, which continues to this day. Philadelphia influence James Kyle, who was originally from Scotland, had come to Fayetteville from laborers to build the house and hauled the building materials by water from Philadelphia. Builders used handmade bricks and hand-hewn support beams in the Greek Revival style. The skilled Italian craftsmen from Philadelphia are credited with the intricate detail work in the interior of the building. The house has a hipped roof with a widow’s walk and features fancy cast iron design. Outside walls are 18 inches thick, double brick with a sand-filled vacuum between the bricks. This was to provide insulation and help make the building fireproof. Fluted Greek columns and pilasters adorn the the house. Balcony windows are spotlighted on the second floor. One enters the building into a large hallway that runs through the house. When originally built, there were four rooms upstairs and four downstairs with four big chimneys. A formal staircase leads to the second floor. The staircase begins with an octagonal newel inlaid with a six pointed mother- of-pearl star know as a “Builder’s

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