Friday, May 3, 2019

Before and After

My station is clean, the cart is put away, and the Haish House has been safely secured in its box...

Today was my wrap-up day at the Regional History Center, and I took final pictures and put away all the things I stole from other workstations today. It was a bittersweet moment to see all the space that I filled nearly every Monday and Friday this semester be so empty, but the final pictures make it all worth it. 

Front View: Before
Front View: After
In the before picture, notice the sagging front porch and poor alignment of the tower.
 I have reattached the porch completely and the tower is properly aligned again.

Side view: Before

Side View: After
In the before picture, notice the broken chimney and shedding shrubbery. I cleaned and repaired the chimneys, cleaned up the shrubbery, and cleaned and replaced missing or broken window glass.


Back View: Before
Back View: After
During my work, I replaced a chimney that had fallen off completely and restabilized/attached the gazebo and porte-cochere which had been detached.


Side View: After


Side View: Before

This view affords a different perspective on the porte-cochere and displays the second porch which I replaced and stabilized.





I've had such a wonderful experience working with the RHC on this project, and it has opened so many new and fun avenues for me. Through this project, I've been able to visit the Art Institute's conservation lab, discuss marketing with the Dean of the Libraries, and speak with Haish descendants.

Rob, thank you for introducing me to Cindy--and by extension the project that would take over my life for six months. Cindy, thank you for making all of this possible and indulging all my bizarre shopping lists. Jessi, thank you for being so supportive and excited. It's been a joy to work with all of you, and I hope my work is up to par.

While I'm thanking people, I suppose I should thank W. Joseph Zack too for leaving his M.F.A. project at the DeKalb Public Library. It's been 38 years and the model is still going strong.

And thank you for following along.

Hours Today: 3:00

Total Hours: 85:30
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6 comments:

  1. AudreyMay 3, 2019 at 10:31 AM

    Awesome work, Cameron! You should definitely be proud - love the before and after photos.

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  2. KevinMay 4, 2019 at 9:55 AM

    Great job! Thanks for taking on the project.

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    Replies
    1. CameronMay 6, 2019 at 9:32 AM

      Kevin, I'm so glad you appreciate my work. It has been so nice to contribute to my community in this way.

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  3. Judy Haish MurphyMay 4, 2019 at 10:28 AM

    Thank you so much for your hard work. Like Jessi, I too am a descendent of Jacob Haish. Even though I live in Colorado I follow Jessi's blog and really enjoy watching what is being done to preserve his legacy. I'm old enough to remember when the mansion was destroyed to make room for a parking lot. Thank you for reminding us what it looked like.

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    Replies
    1. CameronMay 6, 2019 at 9:33 AM

      Judy, I'm so glad I could do this for you and the rest of the Haish family. It's been such an interesting process to get to know more about the "lost" house and founder.

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