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The Accidental Preservationist

An unexpected journey

East elevation of the Chancognie House.

 

The Chancognie House

 

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What is The AP?

Join me on an unexpected journey in restoration and research at the circa 1810 Simon Jude Chancognie House in Charleston, South Carolina and beyond.

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Meet John Wind. Born in 1783 in Lehigh County, PA and trained as an organ maker, he was established in Lancaster, PA by 1810 as a cabinetmaker and piano maker. As many of you know, I was born in Lancaster, so acquiring a John Wind pianoforte was a dream once I learned that there was one here originally. How do I know? That is a long story which I will reveal in the days and weeks ahead along with the incredible two plus year journey that culminated in the delivery of the pianoforte last week. The best feature of the pianoforte? It was restored to playing condition by John Watson, retired Conservator of Musical Instruments and Mechanical Arts at Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and now in private practice. So, stay tuned – literally – as I trace my unexpected journey with this most remarkable instrument! #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
Special delivery at the Chancognie House…. #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
I have not posted much here of late, but it is not due to a lack of activity here at the Chancognie House - in fact, quite the opposite. It has been so busy that I have not had time to post, but rest assured that many new mysteries have been uncovered in the midst of preparations for a very special delivery here - all will be revealed in the days and weeks ahead! #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
This 18 foot long piece of moulding from the second floor parlor of the Chancognie House would not have been unusual in 1810 when the Chancognie House was built, but it certainly would be hard to come by today. The clear-cutting of longleaf pine forests in the south in the late 19th and early 20th centuries depleted the once abundant supplies of heart pine. This piece of moulding was installed on top of one of the parlor baseboards (also one single piece of wood) and while all effort is made to keep historic fabric in place, years of repainting and filling gaps with a variety of fillers displaced this moulding to the extent that it must be reset. Slide to see some of the material buildup on the backside of the moulding and the shadow of an original hand wrought nail – this moulding had never been previously removed. #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
For this installment of #MysteryObjectMonday, I share the garden gate at the Chancognie House. It has a curious decorative element used in other gates downtown – slide for examples. Do you know what it is? Let me know what you think – I will share the answer tomorrow along with a special feature of the gate here! #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
With insight from a few surviving pieces of hardware and evidence of former hardware under the paint, the louvered shutters on the second and third floors appear to have been originally secured with shutter dogs – with at least one exception. Two windows on the third floor had one surviving shutter dog each along with original pintles – see third and fourth slides. Curiously, there is one shutter latch next to another window on the third floor that is identical to the ones that secured the panel shutters on the first floor – see the fifth slide for the shutter (a later replacement) prior to restoration with modern “S” shutter dog and latch on the right side. That shutter is now secured with holdbacks and latches while the other shutters are secured with reproduction shutter dogs to match the originals. I usually try to preserve historic fabric in its original location here, but in the case of the two shutter dogs on the third floor, the decision was made to unite them and put them in a location where they could be seen and appreciated as a pair on the second floor piazza (first and second slides). They will soon be painted black to preserve the metal and I enjoy looking at them every day. #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse

Instagram

Meet John Wind. Born in 1783 in Lehigh County, PA and trained as an organ maker, he was established in Lancaster, PA by 1810 as a cabinetmaker and piano maker. As many of you know, I was born in Lancaster, so acquiring a John Wind pianoforte was a dream once I learned that there was one here originally. How do I know? That is a long story which I will reveal in the days and weeks ahead along with the incredible two plus year journey that culminated in the delivery of the pianoforte last week. The best feature of the pianoforte? It was restored to playing condition by John Watson, retired Conservator of Musical Instruments and Mechanical Arts at Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and now in private practice. So, stay tuned – literally – as I trace my unexpected journey with this most remarkable instrument! #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
Special delivery at the Chancognie House…. #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
I have not posted much here of late, but it is not due to a lack of activity here at the Chancognie House - in fact, quite the opposite. It has been so busy that I have not had time to post, but rest assured that many new mysteries have been uncovered in the midst of preparations for a very special delivery here - all will be revealed in the days and weeks ahead! #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
This 18 foot long piece of moulding from the second floor parlor of the Chancognie House would not have been unusual in 1810 when the Chancognie House was built, but it certainly would be hard to come by today. The clear-cutting of longleaf pine forests in the south in the late 19th and early 20th centuries depleted the once abundant supplies of heart pine. This piece of moulding was installed on top of one of the parlor baseboards (also one single piece of wood) and while all effort is made to keep historic fabric in place, years of repainting and filling gaps with a variety of fillers displaced this moulding to the extent that it must be reset. Slide to see some of the material buildup on the backside of the moulding and the shadow of an original hand wrought nail – this moulding had never been previously removed. #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
For this installment of #MysteryObjectMonday, I share the garden gate at the Chancognie House. It has a curious decorative element used in other gates downtown – slide for examples. Do you know what it is? Let me know what you think – I will share the answer tomorrow along with a special feature of the gate here! #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse
With insight from a few surviving pieces of hardware and evidence of former hardware under the paint, the louvered shutters on the second and third floors appear to have been originally secured with shutter dogs – with at least one exception. Two windows on the third floor had one surviving shutter dog each along with original pintles – see third and fourth slides. Curiously, there is one shutter latch next to another window on the third floor that is identical to the ones that secured the panel shutters on the first floor – see the fifth slide for the shutter (a later replacement) prior to restoration with modern “S” shutter dog and latch on the right side. That shutter is now secured with holdbacks and latches while the other shutters are secured with reproduction shutter dogs to match the originals. I usually try to preserve historic fabric in its original location here, but in the case of the two shutter dogs on the third floor, the decision was made to unite them and put them in a location where they could be seen and appreciated as a pair on the second floor piazza (first and second slides). They will soon be painted black to preserve the metal and I enjoy looking at them every day. #theaccidentalpreservationist #chancogniehouse

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The Accidental Preservationist: Juliana Falk


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