Annual Meeting – Page 4 – Preservation of Historic Winchester

Friday Photos: Annual Meeting 2017

Happy Friday! If you could not join us last weekend at PHW’s 53rd Annual Meeting, you can experience the event through some photos taken during the business portion of the meeting. Bruce Downing, President of PHW, presented the following six preservation awards on June 11.

Bruce Downing, President of PHW, leading the meeting

Awards of Merit recognize renovations that contribute to improving the character of their neighborhoods and maintaining the overall historic fabric of the city. PHW presented two Awards of Merit this year:

Ann Brady and Gary Farrington, restoration of 317 South Braddock St. following the fire last year.
Charles and Kelly Hyre, restoration of the private steel and wood bridge (c. 1889) leading to their home at 445 Fairmont Ave.

The Katherine G. Rockwood Revolving Fund Award is named in honor of Katherine G. Rockwood. Mrs. Rockwood was the driving force behind the original 1976 architectural inventory of Winchester, PHW’s Jennings Revolving Fund, and innumerable other programs and activities of PHW. This award recognizes the outstanding renovation of a Jennings Revolving Fund property. PHW presented one Rockwood award this year:

E.G. and Joanne Hamill for the exterior restoration and porch reconstruction at 513 S. Loudoun St.

The Ben Belchic Award is named in honor of Ben Belchic, a founding member of PHW. He was also an active member of the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society, so the Belchic Award recognizes a significant contribution to understanding Winchester’s history. These awards are generally presented for written texts, such as books, maps, National Register nominations, and guided tours. This year, PHW recognized one scholar:

Wil Johnston for On the Town! Celebrating James Wood and the Founding of Winchester in the Shenandoah Valley.

The Carroll H. Henkel Award is named in honor of Carroll H. Henkel, PHW’s first president in 1963-1964. This award recognizes outstanding leadership for historic preservation in the Winchester-Frederick County area. This year, we recognized one outstanding coalition:

The family members, residents of Shawneeland, and elected officials who came together to formulate the plan to save the Clowser House, recognized under their official organizational name the Clowser Foundation, and accepted by its president, Larry Webb.

PHW presented a special President’s Award to recognize the over fifty years of service put in by the entire Orndoff family, stretching all the way back to before PHW was even an organization itself. Betty Orndoff is one of the last people left who stood in protest in 1962 before the bulldozers came to raze the Conrad House. Edwin, Betty, and their daughter Eydie have since volunteered at almost every Holiday House Tour and attended nearly every major event of the organization since that time. It is truly a remarkable record of service!

PHW also elected the 2017-2018 Board of Directors, quickly recapped our last year, and we heard some brief remarks from Terry Heder, our host at the Bell House, about the plans for the building’s future uses and roles in telling the story of the Civil War in Winchester. After the meeting, guests could see the inside of the house for guided tours, or stay outside for some light refreshments. All in all, it was a beautiful and joyous afternoon!

See all the photos in our album at Flickr. Happy viewing!

Annual Meeting and Clowser Memorial Service Photos

Reminder: PHW’s Annual Meeting is this Sunday, June 11, at the Bell House, 106 North Cameron Street in Winchester. We will begin the business portion of the meeting, including election of the PHW board members, at 2 PM, followed by six preservation award presentations, and finish up the meeting with some remarks by our host, Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation. Afterwards, please stay for light refreshments, socializing, and building tours. If you have stories to share of the Bell House and its history, our hosts would also love to hear them.

Last weekend, we attended the Clowser Foundation’s memorial service and lease signing celebration at the Clowser House in Shawneeland. If you weren’t able to attend, you can catch a few images of the event in our Flickr album. Happy viewing!

Friday Roundup: Upcoming Events and a Free Webinar

Happy Friday! There are two events coming in June. First, on Saturday, June 3 at 10:30 a.m., the Clowser Foundation will have a memorial service at the Clowser cemetery (152 Tomahawk Trail, Winchester, VA 22602) for the massacre in which members of the Clowser family and other settlers were killed or taken prisoner by Delaware Indians in 1764, followed by a lease signing celebration. Please join them for this free event and help them start off their efforts to save the Clowser House.

Second, on Sunday, June 11 at 2 p.m., PHW will hold its 53rd Annual Meeting and Preservation Awards at the Bell House, 106 North Cameron Street, Winchester, VA 22601. Please join us at this free for members event to celebrate local preservation projects and people and start PHW’s year on the right foot. If you were unable to attend the Holiday House Tour, this will also give you another opportunity to see the Bell House and learn about the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields and their plans for the building.

The Preservation Leadership Forum and NeighborWorks America hosted the webinar “Preserving and Supporting Businesses in Historic Neighborhoods” on April 27. The webinar examined how small businesses contribute to the vitality of older neighborhoods through offering essential services and serving as community anchors. This builds upon previous studies that have identified historic buildings as incubators for small businesses. Check out the webinar and the addition related materials here.

Friday Photos: An Assortment after the Annual Meeting

This week, PHW has added about 40 photos to the following albums on Flickr. As always, see all the new additions at the beginning of the photostream, or at the end of their respective albums:
Morgan Street (1976 Architectural Survey)
Kurtz Cultural Center (“Before Freedom Came” and other exhibits)
Kidzfest 2016
Annual Meeting 2016

We would also like to take a moment to congratulate the award recipients pictured in the Annual Meeting 2016 album, as well as two winners who could not join us last Sunday.

Awards of Merit
These awards recognize renovations of houses or buildings that contribute to improving the character of their neighborhoods and maintaining the overall historic fabric of the city.

Lawton Saunders & Larry Omps
317 South Cameron Street, the Old Jail
(not pictured)

Lindsey Richardson and Brandon Wakeman
414 North Loudoun Street
(not pictured)

Winchester Little Theatre
Phase 1 of the Restoration Campaign
315 West Boscawen Street
Accepted by Marjorie Lewis and Vonderene Swigart

Ben Belchic Awards
This award is named in honor of Ben Belchic, a founding member of PHW. Ben Belchic was also an active member of the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society, so the Belchic award recognizes a significant contribution to understanding Winchester’s history. These awards are generally presented for written texts, such as books, maps, National Register nominations, and guided tours.

Mount Hebron Cemetery
Mount Hebron Cemetery History App
Accepted by John Lewis and George Schember

Bob Hampton and George Schember
Walking in the Footsteps of General Daniel Morgan
Accepted by Bob Hampton and George Schember

Patron’s Award
This award recognizes a person or business which has been an outstanding supporter of the goals and programs of PHW. This award usually recognizes a financial component (donations, fundraising efforts, etc.)

Museum of the Shenandoah Valley
For ten years of in-kind support of PHW
Accepted by Julie Armel

Lifetime Achievement Awards
This award recognizes a person who has worked for the goals and programs of PHW over many years. Whereas a Henkel Award may recognize a short term, high-impact project, Lifetime Achievements are a recognition of “slow and steady” work for preservation efforts over the long-term.

Katie Rockwood and Patricia Zontine
Presented by Bruce Downing, accepted by Patricia Zontine and Tom Rockwood

The following PHW board members completed their terms this year. Please take a moment to thank them for their service the next time you see them!

Sharon Collette
Kathy Cresegiona
Nancy Murphy
Richie Pifer, Jr.
Sarah Smith
Doug Watson

Also, be sure to congratulate Tim Machado for joining the board this year, and Bruce Downing for stepping up to be President of the PHW board.

Friendly Reminder: Two PHW Events Coming Soon!

PHW’s 52nd Annual Meeting

Date: Sunday, June 12, 2016

Time: 2-5 p.m.

Place: The Hexagon House, 530 Amherst Street, Winchester, VA

Cost: Free for PHW members and invited guests. Voting at the business meeting is restricted to dues-paying PHW members.

Activities: The annual business meeting includes the election of board members and presentation of the 2016 PHW Preservation Awards. Following the business meeting, which is expected to last about one hour, we will enjoy a light reception, homebrew beers, and (weather permitting) lawn games. The Hexagon House will be open for guided and self-guided tours (including the second story). For something a little more relaxing, you may sit down for a few minutes and color a house.

Lunch and Learn Lecture “The Origin of Winchester Street Names” presented by Timothy Youmans, Director of Planning for Winchester City

Date: Thursday, June 16, 2016

Time: Noon-1 p.m.

Place: OakCrest Companies, 126 N. Kent Street, Winchester, VA

Cost: Free and open to the public

Lunch: Bring your own lunch

Parking is limited and on-street parking is metered; we recommend utilizing the George Washington Autopark, across the street from OakCrest.

We hope to see you at one or both events!

Mark Your Calendars for Two PHW Events in June

As you may know, June is the Annual Meeting month at PHW. We mark the start of our 52nd year at the Hexagon House, 530 Amherst Street, on Sunday, June 12. The annual business meeting including election of board members and presentation of the 2016 PHW Preservation Awards begins at 2 PM. Following the business meeting, we will enjoy a light reception, homebrew brews, and (weather permitting) lawn games. This event is free to attend, but voting at the business meeting is restricted to dues-paying PHW members.

Date: Sunday, June 12, 2016
Time: 2-5 p.m.
Place: The Hexagon House, 530 Amherst Street, Winchester, VA
Cost: Free for PHW members and invited guests

Shortly thereafter, we will enjoy our last “spring” Lunch and Learn Lecture of 2016 with “The Origin of Winchester Street Names” presented by Timothy Youmans, Director of Planning for Winchester City.

Date: Thursday, June 16, 2016
Time: Noon-1 p.m.
Place: OakCrest Companies, 126 N. Kent Street, Winchester, VA
Cost: Free and open to the public
Lunch: Bring your own lunch

Parking is limited and on-street parking is metered; we recommend utilizing the George Washington Autopark, across the street from OakCrest.

We hope to see you at one or both events!

Thanks for Your Support!

PHW is drawing closer to the end of our fiscal year on May 31. Our spring renewal letters are often a condensed Annual Report, so we wanted to take a moment and share this letter with all of our online readers, too. If you are a PHW member, thanks for supporting us with your dues! If you’re not, please consider joining or even making a one time donation to us via PayPal to help us continue our programs and activities as we prepare to enter our 52nd year.

Over the past year, PHW has continued our Lunch and Learn lecture programs, providing free, high quality history and preservation information to the community, with topics ranging from the history of railroads, Douglas School, and Winchester’s “Wild West” days, to the impacts of the new National Register Historic Districts, to introducing the National Park Service’s Training Center in Frederick, MD.

We also have plenty of fun while learning about history at PHW, as seen during our fall Memberfest. The 2015 theme was that of a speakeasy. Along with the fun of dressing as gangsters and flappers close to Halloween, we enjoyed the superb music of the Bob Larson Trio, homebrew beers, and tales of Winchester during its time as a dry town.

Thanks to the community’s interest and support, PHW was able to make the Holiday House Tour fundraiser a success not only for us, but also the Winchester Little Theatre. The sales generated from our Bough and Dough Shop put another $2,700 into the Winchester Little Theatre’s Restoration Campaign. As you may have seen, the beautiful new roof is now being installed on the old Pennsylvania Freight Station!

Last year, PHW dipped back into children’s education with the railroad program held in conjunction with the Friends of Handley Regional Library. This year, PHW is aiming to expand on that work and provide a fun, free, and educational activity booth at Kidzfest on May 14. We will provide coloring activity sheets covering a variety of architectural styles, suitable for the entire family to explore buildings, history, and color together.

PHW partnered with the City and the North End Citizens Association with the work at the National Avenue roundabout. PHW authored two industrial heritage signs and sold bricks to line the sidewalk as part of the beautification efforts. The proceeds from the brick sales raised $1,000 each for the local chapter of the Boys and Girls Club and the Timbrook House. Both organizations support the education of children in the community.

Lastly, mark your calendars for PHW’s 52nd Annual Meeting, which will be held Sunday afternoon on June 12th at the PHW headquarters in the Hexagon House, 530 Amherst Street. Yard games will return, along with our usual local preservation awards and election of PHW’s board of directors for the 2016-2017 year.

If you prefer to mail a check, click here for a copy of our membership application form to return with your dues.

However you chose to support PHW, know that we appreciate your support and enthusiasm!

PHW’s 2015 Preservation Award Winners

Congratulations are due to the following people and projects recognized with a 2015 PHW preservation award:

Certificates of Appreciation to the 2014 Holiday House Tour Homeowners
Tommy and Sarah Beavers, John Chesson, Joe and Sharon Collette, Martha Shickle, Eugene and Sarah Smith, David and Margery Wingenbach

Awards of Merit
Thomas and Jaruvan Frerotte, Chop Stick Café, 207 North Kent Street
Jack Schutte and Terri Morgoglione, Handley Crossing, 1000 Valley Avenue
Winchester Hiram Lodge No. 21 fresco restoration
Tim and Barbara Bandyke, 205 West Pall Mall Street

Katherine G. Rockwood Award
Tom and Deanna Stouffer, 125 East Clifford Street

Lucille Lozier Award
Museum of the Shenandoah Valley, Rose Hill Manor House

Ben Belchic Award
Judy Humbert & June Gaskins-Davis, History of Douglas School Winchester, Virginia: A Tribute to Endurance, Belief, Perseverance, and Success

Elsie Rosenberger Award
John Chesson

Carroll Henkel Award
Linda Quynn Ross for leadership of the French and Indian War Foundation

Lifetime Achievement Award
Eloise Strader for decades of commitment to preserving Winchester’s history

Congratulations and a round of applause are due to all the award winners for their efforts to preserve Winchester’s history, and many thanks to our hosts at the Winchester Little Theatre for allowing us to use their building for the Annual Meeting in the midst of their own busy summer schedule. Special thanks as well to David Logan and Tim Machado for bringing us up to speed on the building progress and allowing us to get up close to the restoration work at the Little Theatre. Sunday was a perfect way to finish up our 50th year and start on our 51st!

Annual Meeting and PHW’s Preservation Awards

PHW will kick off our 51st year with the Annual Meeting on Sunday, June 28 at the Winchester Little Theatre. A large part of what we look forward to celebrating at Annual Meeting, aside from the food and friends, is seeing the preservation projects that have happened around Winchester over the past year.

The awards were started by PHW in 1980 as preservation instead of demolition started to become the norm. The awards were intended to encourage the often lonely and unrecognized efforts of local preservationists. Initially, all projects, whether building restorations, leadership, or scholarly research, were awarded a certificate of merit.

In 1986, the Lucille Lozier Award, Ben Belchic Award, and Carroll H. Henkel Award were added to the merit awards to recognize specific preservation projects. As longtime PHW members or readers of the 50th Anniversary blog series may know, these three awards were named in honor of founding members of PHW who had passed away by this point in time. The Henkel award, named for PHW’s first president, honors individuals who demonstrate outstanding leadership for historic preservation in the Winchester-Frederick County area. The Lozier award, named for PHW’s president during the final year of the struggle to save the Conrad House, is awarded to a renovation of a significant structure retaining 75% of the historic architectural fabric. The Belchic award, named for PHW’s first resident historian, recognizes a significant contribution to understanding Winchester’s history through written texts, such as books, maps, National Register nominations, and guided tours.

In 1988, the Elsie Rosenberger Award was added to the roster to recognize volunteerism with PHW. This award also is the only one to date which is recognized with an engraving of the volunteers’ names on a silver octagonal platter which remains on display year-round at the PHW office.

Two more awards were added in the 1990s. The first, the Katherine G. Rockwood Revolving Fund Award, was initiated in 1996. Named for the mastermind behind many of PHW’s projects of the 1970s and early 1980s, including the 1976 Historic District survey and the Limestone, Sycamores, & Architecture book, this award is only eligible to the approximately 80 properties PHW has purchased through the Revolving Fund. Until this time, it had been standard not to recognize the work put into the Revolving Fund properties as a quality restoration was part of the agreement to purchase the property. Added the next year was the Patron Award, recognizing outstanding supporters of the goals and programs of PHW. As it usually encompasses a financial component, it is likely to recognize sponsors or large donors to the organization.

The newest award is the Lifetime Achievement, which came to be in 2009. E. E Bayliss, Jr., who had long been PHW’s go-to realtor for the Revolving Fund, had passed away shortly before the Annual Meeting and no particular award seemed to fit the work he had done for PHW. After brainstorming, we decided the best recognition would be a Lifetime Achievement to recognize a person who has worked for the goals and programs of PHW over many years. Whereas a Henkel Award may recognize a short term, high-impact project, Lifetime Achievements are a recognition of “slow and steady” work over the long-term. The award is often presented posthumously to recognize a PHW supporter who may otherwise be unrecognized despite long years of preservation work.

Ten more names will join the list of PHW Preservation Award winners this Sunday, and a new recognition category will be presented as well. The winners won’t be publicly released until following the meeting, but you can review the past winners from 1980-2014 at PHW’s site.

We hope to see you Sunday as these names become inscribed in PHW’s history!

Mark your calendars: PHW’s 51st Annual Meeting on June 28th

Join PHW as we celebrate another year of historic preservation in Winchester. The business portion of the meeting features an overview of the past year, election of board members, and presentation of the 2015 Preservation Awards. The Winchester Little Theatre team will then bring you up to date on the work and progress at the Little Theatre. Afterwards, stay for an afternoon of socializing, refreshments, and building tours. WLT will have slates for sale, which can be purchased for $10 each and signed. Much like other projects which used engraved bricks for sidewalks to raise funds, your signed slates will be used on the actual roof at the Pennsylvania Freight Station.

Date: Sunday, June 28
Time: 2:00 PM
Location: The Winchester Little Theatre, 315 W. Boscawen St.
Cost: The event is free for current PHW members and invited guests. Need to join or renew your membership? Visit our membership page for more information.