Upton/Chandler
House Committee Annual Report
Mary E.
Cogswell, Chair
At last!!!
The Upton/Chandler House has been rehabilitated, restored, renovated, and
revitalized – and is now ready for the creation and mounting of exhibits!!
After four years of the
Committee’s careful and deliberate planning, the replacement of sills by Peter
Ladd and Robert Shoemaker, the detailed and sometimes creative carpentry work by
Robert Shoemaker, with assistance from Travis Locke, the building of kitchen
cabinets by Richard Cook, the creation of a small hearth by Denny Hisler of
Newbury, the creation of a matching newel for the front staircase by Don Allard,
the restoration of ten doors by Paul Proulx, the installation of the Unico
heating and cooling system by Dave Gerlack of Andover, N.H., the installation of
u/v filter storm windows by the Logan Boys of Concord, the installation of a
handicap accessible bathroom by Mike Chadwick, the rewiring and installation of
electricity by Wil Deschenes, the replastering of all the walls and ceilings by
David Buchar of Bradford, the
interior stenciling, mural creation, and painting of all rooms by itinerant
artist David Wiggins, family and friends, of Montpelier, Vt., the
exterior painting and roofing by Fortier Construction of Contoocook, N.H., and
the installation of a security system by Atlantic Security of Concord, N.H. -
after four years, we’re ready to put the collections of the Warner
Historical Society on display in ten huge rooms!
As the renovation of the
main building (Phase 1) has been completed, we are planning for a summer 2005
grand opening. Phase 2, which is the
rebuilding of the back ell and construction of an archival storage room, will
commence next spring, along with new and reconfigured landscaping.
On September 18th
I gave a slide show at The United Church of Warner at their Harvest Supper,
showing the progression of work done at the house over the past few years.
And on November 21, Sunday afternoon from
To the Upton/Chandler House
Committee and the Interior Decorating Sub-committee, a very special thank you
with immense gratitude for the years of dedication and hard work in planning
this major rehabilitation. This past
year Robert Shoemaker, Linda and David Hartman, Ken and Nancy Cogswell, Rebecca
Courser, Kim Morgan, Evie Joss and Tom Greenlaw attended monthly, semi-monthly,
and lately, weekly meetings, created and reviewed plans, offered a multitude of
suggestions, took on specific assignments to analyze our needs, and oversaw the
internal painting and restoration.
But our extra special thank
you goes to Robert Shoemaker, our carpenter extraordinaire, our “PR” guru,
our general contractor and overall supervisor, the friend who opened his home to
painter David Wiggins and his daughters for four months this summer, the man
who’s special care and attention to detail has made this house an
extraordinary showpiece for the display of Warner’s history.
Thank you Shoe!