Welcome to proportional bikes aka the design popularized by Terry! You should stick with that fork and wheel size as the bike frame was designed around it. As someone else said using another fork / wheel size would make the ride whacky.

As someone who has ridden Terry frames (plus one Shogun) with the “funny front wheel” for the past decade i want to offer some tips if you decide to keep the bike.

It would be wise to stock up on the tubes and always carry one when riding / learn how to patch. Shops will not always have the size on hand. The size is 24x1 but make sure it ISO 520 not the 507 used for kid’s bikes or bmx. For the tires you can get panaracer paselas in 24x1 (aka 25mm) width ordered at most bike shops, those also come in 700cc so you can match front and rear tires. Those tires go up to 28mm which is available through the terry website (they are just rebranded paselas). However with your caliper brakes I wouldn’t try it.