Kreeger Cabin

Rustic and cozy historic log cabin a mere 20 minutes to Winston-Salem, with outdoor enthusiast activities at nearby iconic Pilot Mountain State Park!

This charming mid-19th century log cabin was built by Isaac and Louisa Krieger on land purchased by his parents in 1814 and has remained in the family since then. The Kriegers were among German immigrants who traveled down the Great Wagon Road in the 18th century from Pennsylvania and settled in nearby Bethania. The Kriegers eventually established themselves in the Rural Hall area near present-day King.

The cabin is built of hand-hewn logs with half-dovetailed notching set on a stone foundation. The first and second floor is arranged in a hall-and-parlor plan. Entering the cabin through split-leaf paneled doors, a small entry features the paneled staircase with turned balustrade and newel post. The living room or “hall” features wood beamed ceiling and large Federal/Greek Revival-style mantel. Throughout the cabin are hand-planed wood walls and ceilings, pine floors, simple door and window surrounds, and stylish Greek Revival two-panel doors. The roof is covered by a standing seam metal roof and the roof eaves display delightful decorative brackets. All of these elements are reflective of the previously rural setting of the homeplace, and Isaac and Louisa’s successful enterprise. 

The original log house was eventually expanded by Isaac and Louisa’s son James (by this time spelled “Kreeger”) and his wife Charlotte around 1900. Sometime in the 20th century, the house was rented to people farming the surrounding land. In the late 1990s, the Gentry family, descendants of the Kreegers, planned to develop the land into a new neighborhood. Their plan was to donate the old farmhouse to the fire department as a practice burn until they discovered through their tenant the original log structure within the larger house. They decided to undertake the restoration of the log portion in 1999-2000 that included repairing all but two original logs, replacing the chinking, rebuilding the fireplace, refinishing the original floors, and constructing the rear kitchen and bathroom addition. Original ax and pencil marks were carefully preserved and two mantels from the demolished sections were re-used as a display shelf in the living room and in a second-floor bedroom. 

The five-room Kreeger Cabin has two bedrooms and one bathroom connected to town water and sewer. The first floor has an electric mini-split for heating and cooling, and a window air conditioning unit for the second floor. Since its restoration in 2000, the cabin has been used as a guesthouse and family getaway. In livable condition, the cabin would benefit from updates and repair to some lower logs, as well as landscaping efforts to soften the impact from the nearby neighborhood.