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Keeping History in Good Repair
Old State House in dire need, say preservationists
By Michael Levenson, Globe Staff | August 13, 2006
The Old State House in Boston -- a grand national landmark and symbol of revolutionary Massachusetts -- needs $3 million in repairs to prevent it from rotting and crumbling, according to the Bostonian Society, the historical preservation group that manages the building.
Blue scaffolding and green mesh shroud the building's exterior, as the society mounts a campaign to refurbish the Old State House by next month. Lashed by Tropical Storm Wilma in October, the venerable, 293-year-old structure suffered serious damage to its northeast corner, on State and Congress streets, said Brian LeMay , the society's executive director. Some of the structural problems were recognized years ago, but nothing was done about them, he said.
Responsibility for the building is divided among the city , which owns the Old State House, the National Park Service, which is responsible for maintaining it, and the Bostonian Society, which runs the museum inside, LeMay said.
After the storm, the Park Service provided $345,000 for repairs, state government provided a $50,000 grant, and the society raised $1 million from private donors.
``Between the two of them [the Park Service and the city], I believe it was incumbent upon somebody to oversee these matters," LeMay said yesterday. ``It wasn't the responsibility of the Bostonian Society to do it -- we leapt into it with both feet because it had to be done."
Jennifer Mehigan, a spokeswoman for the City of Boston, said it is the Park Service's responsibility to pay for repairs to the Old State House, but added, ``We try to work with them because we realize their budget has been cut over the years."
A spokesmen for the Park Service could not be reached for comment yesterday.
The challenge for preservationists is to replace bricks, mortar, plaster, and wood, faded from centuries of exposure to cold Boston winters and searing city summers, with new materials that will not disturb the building's historic appearance, said Donald Tellalian , a Boston architect who is helping to design the renovation.
``I suppose the highest compliment after we finish our work will be, `Well, gee, what did you do?' " Tellalian said.
Last October, rainwater seeped through the building's porous bricks and aging mortar, warping wooden wainscoting inside, stripping away paint, and causing plaster to bubble and buckle. Weakened from the fierce winds that blow through the canyon of glass and metal office buildings where it stands, the Old State House's northeast corner might have collapsed, LeMay said. An inspection of the building revealed slates were missing from the roof, the building's white tower -- once the highest point in the city, second only to Old North Church -- was rotting, and wooden windowsills needed replacing.
Built in 1713 as the seat of royal government in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Old State House has played silent host to pivotal events and powerful people. In 1770, British soldiers shot and killed five Bostonians gathered outside its walls, stirring revolutionary sentiment in an attack that came to be known as the Boston Massacre. Six years later, in 1776, the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence in Massachusetts took place on the Old State House's balcony. Beginning in 1780, the building's chambers served as the seat of the state Legislature until the new State House was built on Beacon Hill in 1798. Samuel Adams and John Adams passed trough its doors, and John Hancock is said to have stored his wine collection in the basement.
Preserving the building has not always been a priority. In 1881, the city briefly considered dismantling the venerable structure and moving it brick by brick to Chicago, where it was to become a tourist attraction. Historians convinced city officials the move would be a travesty, LeMay said.
Repairs were begun in June, LeMay said, and the northeast corner, which was at risk of collapsing, has been stabilized. But much work remains. Before the bricks and mortar can be replaced, thick layers of plaster must be removed from the walls by hand and the masonry behind must dry, he said.
The $3 million price tag may be a tough sell in a city already reeling from millions in new costs to repair the Big Dig tunnels. But some tourists outside the Old State House yesterday said the proposed fixes to the building are well worth the money.
``You can't put a value on something like this," said Charlotte Carlile , 58, of Daytona Beach, Fla., who was visiting Boston. ``How can you put a value on history?"
Globe Correspondent Ari Bloomekatz contributed to this report. Michael Levenson can be reached at mlevenson@globe.com.
? Copyright 2006 Globe Newspaper Company.
Old State House in dire need, say preservationists
By Michael Levenson, Globe Staff | August 13, 2006
The Old State House in Boston -- a grand national landmark and symbol of revolutionary Massachusetts -- needs $3 million in repairs to prevent it from rotting and crumbling, according to the Bostonian Society, the historical preservation group that manages the building.
Blue scaffolding and green mesh shroud the building's exterior, as the society mounts a campaign to refurbish the Old State House by next month. Lashed by Tropical Storm Wilma in October, the venerable, 293-year-old structure suffered serious damage to its northeast corner, on State and Congress streets, said Brian LeMay , the society's executive director. Some of the structural problems were recognized years ago, but nothing was done about them, he said.
Responsibility for the building is divided among the city , which owns the Old State House, the National Park Service, which is responsible for maintaining it, and the Bostonian Society, which runs the museum inside, LeMay said.
After the storm, the Park Service provided $345,000 for repairs, state government provided a $50,000 grant, and the society raised $1 million from private donors.
``Between the two of them [the Park Service and the city], I believe it was incumbent upon somebody to oversee these matters," LeMay said yesterday. ``It wasn't the responsibility of the Bostonian Society to do it -- we leapt into it with both feet because it had to be done."
Jennifer Mehigan, a spokeswoman for the City of Boston, said it is the Park Service's responsibility to pay for repairs to the Old State House, but added, ``We try to work with them because we realize their budget has been cut over the years."
A spokesmen for the Park Service could not be reached for comment yesterday.
The challenge for preservationists is to replace bricks, mortar, plaster, and wood, faded from centuries of exposure to cold Boston winters and searing city summers, with new materials that will not disturb the building's historic appearance, said Donald Tellalian , a Boston architect who is helping to design the renovation.
``I suppose the highest compliment after we finish our work will be, `Well, gee, what did you do?' " Tellalian said.
Last October, rainwater seeped through the building's porous bricks and aging mortar, warping wooden wainscoting inside, stripping away paint, and causing plaster to bubble and buckle. Weakened from the fierce winds that blow through the canyon of glass and metal office buildings where it stands, the Old State House's northeast corner might have collapsed, LeMay said. An inspection of the building revealed slates were missing from the roof, the building's white tower -- once the highest point in the city, second only to Old North Church -- was rotting, and wooden windowsills needed replacing.
Built in 1713 as the seat of royal government in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Old State House has played silent host to pivotal events and powerful people. In 1770, British soldiers shot and killed five Bostonians gathered outside its walls, stirring revolutionary sentiment in an attack that came to be known as the Boston Massacre. Six years later, in 1776, the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence in Massachusetts took place on the Old State House's balcony. Beginning in 1780, the building's chambers served as the seat of the state Legislature until the new State House was built on Beacon Hill in 1798. Samuel Adams and John Adams passed trough its doors, and John Hancock is said to have stored his wine collection in the basement.
Preserving the building has not always been a priority. In 1881, the city briefly considered dismantling the venerable structure and moving it brick by brick to Chicago, where it was to become a tourist attraction. Historians convinced city officials the move would be a travesty, LeMay said.
Repairs were begun in June, LeMay said, and the northeast corner, which was at risk of collapsing, has been stabilized. But much work remains. Before the bricks and mortar can be replaced, thick layers of plaster must be removed from the walls by hand and the masonry behind must dry, he said.
The $3 million price tag may be a tough sell in a city already reeling from millions in new costs to repair the Big Dig tunnels. But some tourists outside the Old State House yesterday said the proposed fixes to the building are well worth the money.
``You can't put a value on something like this," said Charlotte Carlile , 58, of Daytona Beach, Fla., who was visiting Boston. ``How can you put a value on history?"
Globe Correspondent Ari Bloomekatz contributed to this report. Michael Levenson can be reached at mlevenson@globe.com.
? Copyright 2006 Globe Newspaper Company.