Volume 7 Issue 1

2007

College Hill Gazette

2007

It has been nearly a year since the exterior restoration started on the Eleutherian College building.

  The exterior work is nearing completion thanks to the  construction crew of Harmon & Harmon, a construction company based out of Jennings County.

  In the beginning , there were many concerns, which all proved to be unfounded. It was hard to witness boards that were once flooring, being tossed out the front door. The Harmon and Harmon crew knew just what needed to be done and did it efficiently.

 To date  all eight chimneys that were original to the building  have now been replaced.

  All original popular wood flooring was sanded down and used in reconstructing window frames. The window frames were so deteriorated that window panes were impossible to keep in.

    The building proved to be in a worse  state of deterioration than any of us expected.

  With years of neglect, and very little funds to repair, the front third floor had

 

 dropped to an unsafe level.

We could have potentially lost the college structure if work had not started when it had.

  Period glass was brought in and placed in the new frames. It is a joy to be inside the building looking out upon the landscape. The swirls in the window panes are very noticeable.

  As mentioned in last years newsletter, the eight chimneys have been replaced. The brick was donated by the Reindollar family. The bricks came from the Raindollar home that was destroyed by fire .

    The new cupola  is simply outstanding! The widow’s walk has been restored. It is possible to walk to the very top. Before this restoration it was unsafe to even ascend up into the attic space.

  The college bell has a new metal frame into which it now sits.

   The college building was closed nearly all last summer due to the construction. Hopefully by

 

 

autumn, tours will once

again be a part of Eleutherian’s routine.

  At this time it has not been decided whether there will be an open house ceremony to show off the new work.

  David Cart also won a bid to do some interior work. This includes placing a new sub floor on the balcony and third floor rooms. The original floor joists on these floors were in much better condition than the joists on the ground floor. Door facings and the balcony will

also be painted.

The recently exterior

renovation of Eleutherian

 

   ~ Photo by Vicki Fewell