Friday Photos: Willow Brook

This week we step back to 1984 and visit “Willow Brook” near Kernstown at 3105 Shawnee Drive. Willow Brook, also known as the Hamilton-Triplett-Copp House, was once a 300 acre working farm consisting of a dairy, icehouse, large barn and a brick smokehouse. Although the house is solidly vernacular from the exterior and the homeowners were not prominent in local history, the house still displays remarkable architectural details. The most prominent piece, an elaborate mantelpiece featuring a large handcarved eagle that was originally in the living room of Willow Brook, was purchased by E.I. DuPont in the 1930s and became part of the Winterthur Museum collection. By 1984 the farm was whittled down to the main house and a root cellar on 1.3 acres. Shortly after these photographs were taken, the house was sold and converted to an apartment complex.

From Willow Brook, November 1984

Friday Photos: The Grim-Moore House

Friday Photos returns this week with a look back at a massive renovation project at 510-512 South Loudoun Street. The building, known as the Grim-Moore House, is comprised of a log building circa 1760 and a brick building circa 1795-96. The house was purchased by Preservation of Historic Winchester through the Jennings Revolving Fund in 1975. At the time of the purchase, the once grand Federal-style home had been subdivided into multiple apartments, resulting in truly horrific living conditions. Bill and Virginia Miller purchased the property from PHW and worked diligently from 1976-1982 to restore the home to its original splendor.

Virginia Miller documented the process in over 500 photographs and captions. PHW was fortunate enough to be allowed to scan and transcribe the notes from this scrapbook, and now we can share them with you. This is a fascinating and telling example of how PHW’s Revolving Fund can save “junky” properties from neglect and almost certain demolition and restore them to contributing structures in the Historic District. We hope you take some time this Apple Blossom weekend to remind yourself that this is what PHW is all about.

From The Grim-Moore House

Fort Loudoun Day on May 18, 2013

Join the French and Indian War Foundation for a journey back in time at the location of Fort Loudoun in Winchester, 419 N. Loudoun St. on May 18 from 10 AM-1 PM. Tours begin at 10 AM, to be followed by guest speaker Larry Johnson at 11 AM, essay contest results at 11:30 AM, and the flag raising at noon. Don’t miss the interactive display presented by Dr. David Clark to learn how an archeological dig functions.

This event will be held rain or shine and is free and open to the public. To learn more, visit the French and Indian War Foundation’s website at www.fiwf.org.

Handley Library and the American Renaissance in Architecture and Art

Dr. Richard Guy Wilson, Architectural Historian and Commonwealth Professor in Architecture History at University of Virginia, will speak at the Friends’ of the Handley Library Annual Meeting on Wed., May 15, 2013, 7:00 p.m., Handley Library Auditorium.

The Handley Library is an excellent example of a major transformation that took place in American art and architecture in the later 19th and 20th century. Spurred by the idea that the Italian Renaissance had sprung to life in the United States, architects and artists created a lasting legacy of classically inspired designs. Dr. Wilson will focus on the idea of an American Renaissance and how the Handley Library embodies its ideas.

The Friend’s Annual Meeting is in honor of the first 100 years of The Handley Library. A reception and book signing will follow the lecture. In addition, Martha Woodruff of WMRA will interview Dr. Wilson on her program The Spark. The program will be broadcast at noon on May 10 and at 3 p.m. on May 11.

To learn more about the Handley Library, visit them at www.handleyregional.org.

Friday Photos: The Old Frederick County Court House

Step back in time to the early to mid 2000s and remember the Frederick County Court House before it became the Old Court House Civil War Museum. Be sure to visit them on the web at www.civilwarmuseum.org, or even better, stop by the museum at 20 N. Loudoun St. in the heart of Old Town Winchester, Monday-Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. or Sunday 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

From Old Frederick County Court House, 2006

Edit: If the wording of this post has caused confusion, the 2000-2006 dates reference the dating of these photos of the renovation work at the Court House, not the age of the building itself, which is 1840.

Friday Photos: 401-403 S. Kent St. and Blues House Showcase

PHW is sharing a selection of our photo collection online each Friday. This week, you can revisit 1999-2000 with the Blues House. As you may recall, PHW purchased the property at 401-403 S. Kent and performed the majority of the renovation ourselves. To do so, we started the Blues House Showcase to raise the necessary funds. The Blues House Showcase was an unexpected hit, attracting crowds far larger than anticipated. The event has since been taken up by other organizations for their fundraising needs, currently benefiting Habitat for Humanity of Winchester-Frederick County, but this is where it all started. Learn more about the event at winchesterblueshouse.com.

Link to the photo album.

Lunch and Learn Lecture Tomorrow

Don’t forget, PHW’s second “Lunch and Learn” lecture on historic brick and mortar will be held tomorrow, April 16 at noon. We’ll be meeting in the main level conference room (at the upper parking lot) at the OakCrest Companies, 126 N. Kent St. Feel free to attend even if you haven’t RSVP’ed — we’ll find room for you!

If you have any other last minute questions, be sure to call or email the office before 10:30 AM tomorrow so we can get back to you in time. Thanks, and we hope to see you at the lecture tomorrow!

Reminder to RSVP for the April 16 Lecture

Don’t forget to RSVP for PHW’s second “lunch and learn” educational lecture “How to Repair and Restore Historic Brick and Mortar” Tuesday, April 16 at noon at the Lewis-Jones Knitting Mill, 126 N. Kent Street, Winchester, VA. The lecture will be held in the main floor conference room at the upper parking lot. Additional parking is available at the George Washington Autopark, 131 N. Kent Street.

The lecture is free to attend and open to the public. If you would like to order a boxed lunch from Panera Bread for the event, please send in your orders to PHW by Sunday, April 14. Boxed lunches can be purchased at www.phwi.org/lectures.php.

To RSVP your attendance without purchasing a lunch, you may call 540-667-3577 or email phwi@verizon.net.

We need your input to plan future lectures and make them relevant to your needs! You can take a quick (less than 5 minute) survey here even if you haven’t attended a lecture yet. If you have some ideas for future topics or if you want to volunteer as a speaker, drop us a line at (540) 667-3577 or phwi@verizon.net.