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Battle Lines |
Winter 2005-2006
Restoration
I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday season. Your organization has moved forward in 2005 with a lot of exciting events, not the least of which was the finalization on the perservation easment for the Daniel Lady Farm. We consummated the paperwork on November 14th and held a press conference on the 18th to make the announcement. We thank our partners in this effort, The Land Conservancy of Adams County, USDA Farm and Ranch Land Protection Program (FRPP), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and Civil War Preservation Trust. Due to the efforts of all, we were able to pay off the mortgage on the farm but more importantly, preserve this treasure for future generations to come. We are planning a formal 'mortgage burning' at the Farm. A beef and pig roast is tentatively scheduled for Juen 10th. Please mark this date on your calendar. Please check our website periodically for updates and our spring newsletter will have more information. I hope all of you will be able to attend. Restoration work continues on the interior of the farm house. To date we have upgraded a lot of electrical and plumbing; original plaster has been restored or repaired in two of the upstairs rooms and the upstairs and downstairs hallways. The two rooms upstairs and the hallways have been painted with original colors. Baseboards in the hallways are scheduled to receive their finish later this month. These areas also had their flooring repaired and restored to show off the beautiful wood -- and it is absolutely glorious. Original colors will be preserved on the banister and posts. Preparation work for the two back rooms downstairs is underway. The walls and woodwork need washed and lightly sanded in preparation for painting. The floors are ready to receive their finish and I am sure will look wonderful. AFter this work, the back three rooms of the upstairs will be assessed for necessary work needed with the small back room requiring extensive plaster restoration. The final two downstairs rooms will be assessed. The parlor and the sitting room downstairs will require a lot of preparation work -- removing 1950's plaster board to the original plaster and the removal of knotty-pine paneling. All of this work must be completed by December 2006 to comply with our Keystone matching grant. Final restoration work on the barn will commence in February with the removal of the concrete floor in the downstairs, removal of the silo base, repairs to the barn bridge and finally the re-pointing of the foundation and barn bridge. Installation of the barn door hinges and latches will take place in the spring. This work is being covered by a Keystone matching grant. Cost assessment is around $50,000 for this final phase. Restoration work, if done properly, is not cheap. With the use of matching grants we have been able to achieve a high quality of work and with the help of our volunteers, we have been able to keep the costs down. When the concrete is removed form the barn and silo area, we will need volunteers who are willing to help us do an archeology survey of the interiour of the barn by sifting all that dirt! We will let you know when that begins. Please contact us if you can lend assistance in any way to help in this process! |
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