This summer, as we move forward into our second full year of the strategic plan, we continue to invest in the restoration and rehabilitation of our historic structures.

This week, skilled preservation-minded painters are re-painting our mansion’s historic porticoes. Everything from the columns and capitals to the ceilings, architraves and denticulated cornice are being covered in fresh white paint. The old growth pine used for the columns, nearly 200 years old, still expresses a sap which must be covered with a stain blocking oil paint.

This project is step one in a three-part project that will continue the entire summer.

The next phase will include the restoration of the historic porch, complete with limestone steps and a wooden porch deck, which will replace the failing marble installed in the late 1980s. Research completed in 2012 identified the original materials and contractors have drawn up plans that will restore those original features.

Be sure to come see us as the process continues, and please pardon our dust — and watch out for the wet paint!

-Nicholas Redding, Executive Director