Preservation Projects Underway
Repair and Enhancement of HVAC System
The Old State House was climate-controlled for the first time in 1992. The HVAC system installed then is still in use today, and until 2007 ran on a 1992 DOS computer. During the spring of 2008, the control system and the chiller were replaced.
The Society is currently working to upgrade and repair the HVAC’s four air-handlers, all valves, as well as the steam humidification system. This work, along with a regular maintenance plan, will help to ensure that temperature and humidity are continually held to appropriate levels, not only for visitors, but also for the priceless artifacts displayed within the building.
Window and Carpentry Repairs
The Old State House has a total of 80 sash windows on the three main stories. These sash windows have a total of 1,544 individual panes of glass and require significant ongoing maintenance. We are in the process of working with the preservation carpentry program at North Bennet Street School to repair some of these windows and also complete a few other carpentry projects at the Old State House.
Completed Preservation Projects
Restoration
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During the 18th century, the Old State House tower was one of the highest spots in town and an excellent place to watch the ships come and go in Boston Harbor. In recent years it was an excellent place to get wet during a north-easter. Much of the tower’s wood siding had become so rotted that water streamed inside during bad storms and then seeped down to the lower floors of the building. The damage also threatened the workings of the still-functioning 1831 Simon Willard clock, the face of which is located in between the lion and unicorn on the east façade.
Tower restoration took place from April to July 2008, and included replacement of wood siding on all four faces, repair and reglazing of the tower windows, installation of new flat-seam copper roofing, and selective repair or replacement of wood balusters and other deteriorated architectural features.
Over the course of the project, Facilities Manager Matt Ottinger was up on the scaffolding every day, coordinating the work with the preservation crew and investigating the tower’s history. The architectural elements that make up the tower do not all date to the same time period; some are as old as 1748 and others are as new as 1990. Dating these elements and determining how they fit together was an important part of the project. The crew made some interesting discoveries, including: an intricate system of angled beams, dating to 1748, which serve as framing for the dome; what are likely to be 18th-century boards, held in place with hand-wrought nails, underneath the tower's copper flashing; and charred wood from the building's last major fire, in 1921.
To find out what else we discovered and learn more about the tower project, visit Ottinger's blog at http://oldstatehousetower.blogspot.com/.
Additional Exterior Restoration |
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Photo courtesy of Judy Selwyn |
In conjunction with the 2008 tower project, miscellaneous minor repairs took place to complete the stabilization of the Old State House exterior. They included replacement of copper roofing and counter-flashing over the south entrance, restoration of masonry on the west and south facades, roof slate replacement and repair, as well as window restoration and repair.
Restoration of Masonry at Northeast Corner(Completed 2006) |
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Photo courtesy of Judy Selwyn |
The Old State House’s bricks are the oldest part of the building. This aging masonry has long been subject to water penetration, particularly at the northeast corner, where surrounding office towers focus and magnify the effects of rain and wind off the harbor. This problem escalated in the fall of 2005, when the remains of Hurricane Wilma passed through Boston and brought the water-penetration problem to crisis proportions. Water poured through the walls to the interior, damaging plaster and wainscoting, and threatening the building’s structural integrity as well as the priceless collection of historical artifacts housed inside. Click to view photos of the damage.
During the summer of 2006, The Bostonian Society spearheaded a three-month project to investigate the causes of persistent water damage to the northeast corner, to restore masonry on the east and north façades of the building, and to create a permanent solution to ongoing water penetration. The Society raised nearly $2 million for this and the ensuing phase of the project—more than its entire annual operating budget—within a mere six months.
This project won a national award from the American Association for State and Local History and is featured in an episode of the History Channel’s Save Our History series.
Engineering Survey |
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Photo courtesy of Edwards and Kelcey |
With support from the Edwin S. Webster Foundation, the Society commissioned an engineering survey in 2006 that indicated damage to the northeast corner of the Old State House was just the tip of the iceberg, and that other portions of the building—most notably the tower—are in critical need of restoration.
Future Projects
Restoration of Main Visitor Entrance, Improved Signage, and Handicap Accessibility |
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Photo courtesy of Michael Dwyer |
In order to create handicap accessibility and improve traffic flow, The Bostonian Society proposes re-opening the west ( Washington Street) door as the main entrance to the building. Our architect is developing possible plans for risers and an accompanying handicap ramp that will allow all visitors to use the same entrance without altering the historic fabric of the building. The risers and ramp will be joined to the door threshold by a structural glass, non-slip bridge, through which the original molded brick water table and granite steps below will still be visible.
Signs and banners will also be installed to identify the site clearly, to direct visitors, and to enliven the pedestrian plaza outside the building.
The Old State House is a Boston Landmark, and as such, both the interior and exterior are protected from significant alteration. In the past, this and structural factors have prevented installation of an elevator for handicap accessibility. However, improvements in elevator technology have introduced the possibility of installing a small, glass-enclosed wheelchair lift that would serve the first and second floors with minimal impact on the historic fabric.
Interior |
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Photo courtesy of Michael Dwyer |
Once the historic fabric of the building is stabilized and accessibility issues are addressed, The Bostonian Society will turn its attention to new exhibitions that highlight the significant role the Old State House played in shaping American democracy. With funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Society consulted during 2007 with some of the leading historians, curators, and exhibition designers in the field to develop a plan for this new, dynamic interpretation.
