Preservation of Historic Winchester – Page 50 – Improving tomorrow by preserving the area's past

Reminder: Fort Loudoun Walk and Learn Next Thursday!

Norman Baker of the French and Indian War Foundation will lead a tour of the site of Winchester’s Fort Loudoun on Thursday, November 10 at noon, weather permitting. The walking tour of the area once covered by the fort will last one hour, with time after for questions for those who can stay longer. On-street parking is limited, but parking is available at the nearby Loudoun Street Autopark.

Meet at noon at 419 North Loudoun Street, Winchester, VA. The event is free and open to the public.

Dress for the weather and wear comfortable walking shoes for the tour. For questions and RSVPs, please call 540-667-3577 or email phwinc.org@gmail.com.

Volunteers Needed for Holiday House Tour

PHW can use your help this Holiday House Tour! We are looking for volunteers who can:

Be a decorator – work with a homeowner to complete decorating tasks approximately from Nov. 30-Dec. 2 (some fresh cut greenery will be available through PHW for decorators to utilize)

Be a docent – give a scripted tour and direct the visitors through a site either Saturday, Dec. 3 (6-9 pm) or Sunday, Dec. 4 (suggested two hour shifts between 1-5 pm)

Be a Bough and Dough Shop volunteer – greet and wait on customers, pack and bag items, be prepared to answer questions about the tour (suggested two-hour shift for either Saturday, Dec. 3 or Sunday, Dec. 4)

Please contact PHW at phwinc.org@gmail.com or 540-667-3577 to leave your contact name, number, available time slots, and preferred volunteer activities.

Sneak Peek: Holiday House Tour 2016 Event Schedule

As you may have guessed, the recent radio silence from PHW is because we have been hard at work putting the finishing touches on the 40th annual Holiday House Tour. We are now ready to announce the schedule of events for 2016:

Saturday, December 3
Bough & Dough Shop at Winchester Little Theatre, 315 West Boscawen Street, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. *

Handbell concert at Braddock Street United Methodist Church, 115 Wolfe Street, 3 p.m. *

George Washington’s Office Museum open 3—9 p.m. *

Candlelight House Tours 6—9 p.m. at:
203 South Braddock Street, Site of the Preview Party
314 Courtfield Avenue
220 West Boscawen Street
514 Amherst Street

Sunday, December 4
Bough & Dough Shop at Winchester Little Theatre, 315 West Boscawen Street, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. *

Daylight House Tours 1—5 p.m. at:
106 North Cameron Street
203 South Braddock Street
314 Courtfield Avenue
220 West Boscawen Street
514 Amherst Street

Shenandoah University choirs at Braddock Street United Methodist Church, 115 Wolfe Street, 7 p.m. *

Event Pricing
Two-Day Tour Tickets (which includes light refreshments and drinks at the Preview Party house 203 South Braddock Street on Saturday evening and access to 106 North Cameron Street on Sunday) are $20/person.
Sunday-Only Tickets are $15/person.
* These marked events taking place on Holiday House Tour weekend are free and open to the public! No Holiday House Tour ticket is required.

Reminder: Log Structure Maintenance and Repairs

Please join us next Thursday for the fall Lunch and Learn Lecture Log Structure Maintenance and Repairs. Moss Rudley, Acting Superintendent of the National Park Service Historic Preservation Training Center in Frederick, Maryland, presents this much-requested topic on maintaining and repairing our historic log structures. Bring a lunch and learn with us!

Date: November 3, 2016
Time: Noon-1 PM
Place: OakCrest Companies, 126 N. Kent St., Winchester, VA
RSVP: Appreciated but not required
Cost: Free and open to the public
Questions? Contact PHW at phwinc.org@gmail.com or 540-667-3577.

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

Reminder: Hopewell Meeting House Tour Tomorrow!

Please join us for our first Walk and Learn tour on Saturday, October 22. Jim Riley will lead a tour of the area’s oldest Quaker Meeting House. Learn the background on the Quakers and the history of the Hopewell Meeting house site. Weather permitting, the tour will include an outdoor component. The event is expected to last 1 to 1.5 hours. Water will be available.

Meet at Hopewell Meeting House, 604 Hopewell Road, Clear Brook, VA at 11 AM. The event is free and open to the public.

Coming Soon: Lincoln Historic Homes Tour

If the thought of visiting our Hopewell Meeting House in Clear Brook this weekend has whetted your appetite for more Quaker homes and history, the Loudoun Preservation Society will host a tour of a Quaker community in Lincoln, Virginia on Sunday, November 6, 2016 from 1-5 PM. A number of historic homes, cemeteries, and other buildings will be open to the public.

Tickets will be available for purchase at the Goose Creek Meeting House, 18204 Lincoln Road, Purcellville, VA, from 1 to 3 PM the day of the tour, $20 per person or $40 per family. Preorders may also be made via PayPal at the event webpage listing (scroll to the bottom of the page to find the PayPal instructions).

All proceeds from the tour support Loudoun Preservation Society’s Grants Program. Learn more about LPS at their website www.preserveloudoun.org.

Coming Soon: Walk and Learn Lectures!

Introducing a new spin on the Lunch and Learn series…Walk and Learn!

This fall, PHW has lined up two on site visits for a more hands-on learning experience. First, on Saturday, October 22, Jim Riley will lead a Saturday tour of the area’s oldest Quaker Meeting House. Learn the background on the Quakers and the history of the Hopewell Meeting house site. Weather permitting, the tour will include an outdoor component. The event is expected to last 1 to 1.5 hours. Water will be available.

Meet at Hopewell Meeting House, 604 Hopewell Road, Clear Brook, VA at 11 AM. The event is free and open to the public.

Second, Norman Baker of the French and Indian War Foundation will lead a tour of the site of Winchester’s Fort Loudoun on Thursday, November 10 at noon, weather permitting. The walking tour of the area once covered by the fort will last one hour, with time after for questions for those who can stay longer. On-street parking is limited, but parking is available at the nearby Loudoun Street Autopark.

Meet at noon at 419 North Loudoun Street, Winchester, VA. The event is free and open to the public. RSVP your attendance for this tour by November 3 to PHW at 540-667-3577 or phwinc.org@gmail.com.

Dress for the weather and wear comfortable walking shoes for both tours. For questions and RSVPs, please call 540-667-3577 or email phwinc.org@gmail.com.

Friday Photos: Old John Kerr

This week, we have just eight photos to share of the first Old John Kerr School on South Cameron Street. The photos show a few interior photos when the building was vacant, as well as exterior photos of the building encased in scaffolding while it was being cleaned and repainted during the rehabilitation by Shenandoah University. It also shows the telltale signs of a file that was heavily used, as the documents inside, including the eight photos, had a run in with a cup of coffee many moons ago.

Find all the photos – and a number of articles we scanned as part of the 50 years of PHW history blog posts – in the Old John Kerr School album on Flickr.

Coming Soon: Winchester Frontier Days, Reconstructing Lost Architecture

Two events are happening soon! First, on Saturday, October 8, celebrate the history of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show on the 100th anniversary of his visit to Winchester. Head out to the beautiful Homestead Farm and Market, 2502 N. Frederick Pike, Winchester, Virginia between 11 AM – 3 PM for a fun day of celebration, history lessons, live music, and an anticipated appearance by “Buffalo Bill” himself. The event will be held, rain or shine! Find more information on Facebook.

Second, on Monday, October 10, head to the Crentz Room in the Cosmos Club, 2121 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC between 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM for a free presentation by Calder Loth on “Reconstructing Lost Architecture: A Commendable Tradition.” Reconstruction of a lost historic structure is one of the great taboos of historic preservation. Nevertheless, a widespread popular sentiment holds that natural or man-made disasters should not deprive us of our heritage. Senior Architectural Historian for the Virginia Department of Historic Resources Calder Loth will provide the arguments for rebuilding demolished historic structures, and will offer examples from around the world. Find more information about the event at H-Net.