museums, historical landmarks, & new construction

Dranesville Tavern – Herndon, VA

• We performed a restoration of the termite damage in a gable end log section; effectively rebuilding the gable end log wall for two stories.
• We repaired roof failure from a modern application of cedar shakes interlaced with tar paper. This modern method should never be used on low slopes, the tar paper keeps the wood wet, where traditional installations are three layer, and can breathe on both the faces and the back with the use of skip sheathing.  Either way, low slope roofs should not be wood.
• read more about the tavern here.  

Stone House Foundation-Stone House – Stephens City, VA

• We previously upgraded the roof structure, and installed new siding, rakes, and fascia at the gable elevations. 
• We installed new cypress skip sheathing, at the spacing of the original nailing pattern.  
• We built new windows for the gables.  
• We worked with Frank Stroik, a specialist in German side lap roofing, to install.
• The roof was finished with a traditional linseed oil paint.
• Stone House restoration project – read more about the renovation
• Illustration by Joe Gainer

Sanford-Burgess Log Cabin – Stafford County, VA

Elmwood Cemetery, Keeper’s House – Shepherdstown, WV

• Restoration of a 19th century Victorian home
• Replicated intricate Victorian detailing in our shop
• Replicated bell tower from old photograph

Chinese House – Jefferson County, WV

• We assisted in the planning for rebuilding a Chinese house from Yunnan Province, China. This included traveling to Yunnan to meet with local craftsmen, and to learn about Chinese building practices, which include rammed earth construction.
• Our team built the footings and foundation, and volunteers erected the timber frame.
• This project is an educational and cultural exchange program affiliated with Sidwell Friends School. To watch a documentary and to read more about the project, click here.

Storefront Facade – King St., Leesburg, VA

• We built three traditional wood storefronts with six pairs of double doors to accentuate the look of three seperate store spaces. Each storefront has a different style and sapele was used for all the millwork.

Kernstown Battlefield – Kernstown, VA

• Re-built the Pritchard house front porch to match an 1800’s photograph.
• The solid walnut columns we restored are original to the home.
• We replaced the framing, flooring, and ceiling details.
• The roof is soldered flat seam copper.

Carnegie Library – Washington D.C.

• Restored wood window sashes from 1903.
• The windows are cypress
• Cypress was used for all the parts that replaced rot. 

1810 Beehive Brick Kiln NOVA Parks – Lorton, VA

• Cleaned and repaired, bricks, iron bands, the roof, and rebuilt firebox openings.
• The kiln is round and made out of brick with fireplaces areound the perimeter.

James Madison’s Montpelier – Montpelier Station, VA

• Installed an earthen floor in the lower level of Montpelier made from a traditional mix of clay, sand, and goat hair. The breathability and flexibilty of these floors preserves the historical integrity of the building and prevents moisture buidup in the foundation walls.
• Made and applied a linseed oil based paint for the roof of the temple dome  (pictured), using a recipe found from Williamsburg, VA records.

Holy Cross Abbey – Berryville, VA

• Made and installed wood brackets, wood trusses, and white oak choir stalls.

Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello – Charlottesville, VA

• Installed plaster in the weaver’s cottage with Dominion Traditional. This was a three coat lime plaster on a more modern lath substrate.

Anderson House / Society of the Cincinnati – Washington D.C.

• Floor restoration in the ballroom and the French and English Drawing Rooms.  The Anderson house is a gilded age house, and we use tung oil floor restoration systems which do not require sanding, nor sanding on subsequent re-coats.
• ‘Georgia Suite’ restoration,
• Cleaned and restored cypress wood panelling
• Restored panel shutters
• Historic lock restoration work
• Built a custom handrail

Belle Grove Plantation – National Trust for Historic Preservation, Middletown, VA

• Complete restoration of the porches on the north and south faces of the main house.  They were deteriorating due to deferred maintenance, and by using sub-par materials during previous repairs.

 Sheridan’s Headquarters – Winchester, VA

• Restoration of the Greek Revival porch, added to the antebellum house.  The 28 inch diameter columns were bearing on failing bases, due to the air flow into the column shafts having been compromised in a previous repair attempt.  The job included structural upgrades, support of the columns while their bases were removed, new mahogany flooring with copper drip edges, and new Spanish Cedar bases to match the existing profiles.

Little Rokeby Carriage House Renovation – Leesburg, VA

• Renovation of a turn of the century carriage house at ‘Little Rokeby’.
• Re-milling antique flooring
• Tile
• Wainscoting throughout
• Flagstone kitchen floor
• Use of antique interior doors and hardware.

 1810 Aldie Mill Restoration NOVA Parks – Aldie, VA

• Replaced 50 window sashes using a mullion profile believed to be original, based upon remnants found at the neighboring country mill.  As the mill was built in the early 1800’s, the profile of the window millwork is a key part of an accurate restoration.  The windows that we replaced had been done in the 1980s, using improper profiles and poor quality materials, which failed.  The new sashes were made in our Winchester shop, using Spanish Cedar, with traditional mortise and tenon joinery.

1810 Aldie ‘Country’ Mill Restoration NOVA Parks – Aldie, VA

• Built replica windows
• Carpentry restoration
• Complete lime mortar foundation restoration

 18th Century Creel-Nutt House, Virginia Outdoors Foundation – the Plains, VA

• Built new windows
• Restored select windows
• Reproduction of new doors with strap hinges and thumb latch locks
• New three layer wood roof.  

 Catoctin Creek Distillery – Purcellville, VA

• Designed and fabricated a large storefront window in a historic brick warehouse.
• Built 11 foot tall doors to follow the design of the flanking windows, to handle their deliveries.  It was a tax credit job, so we needed to follow the historic detailing of the windows that we were replacing.

1850s Restoration of Vienna Train Station NOVA Parks-Vienna, VA

• Structural stabilization

1800s Train Station Restoration, Winchester Little Theater – Winchester, VA

• Restoration of its masonry
• reproduced and reinstalled missing doors and millwork
• Structurally upgraded the roof system

Shenandoah National Park – Skyland  (NPS)

• Restored the 1919 historic cabin at Skyland called Vollmer.  This included a replacement of a wood roof, the restoration of a stone chimney, and interior structural work.

Shenandoah National Park – Big Meadows Cabins

• Restored five 1930s cabins at Big Meadows, on Skyline Drive.

1850s Mount Hebron Church Restoration – Yellow Springs, WV

• Lime plaster restoration and replacement. Used traditional milk paint on the plaster.
• various carpentry repairs around the building.

Restoration of Hopewell Quaker Meeting House

The building is a fascinating stone building constructed with a timber framed roof, erected in two phases, starting in about 1760.

• Stabilization of 18th century plaster, followed by re-plastering using lime putty and goat hair; the traditional method.

Restoration of 1845 Pleasant Vale Baptist Church – Delaplane, VA

• Arrested deterioration, by performing a restoration of the exterior pointing, windows, and shutters.  The windows were in an advanced state of deterioration, and we restored them, along with the shutters, in our shop in Winchester.

Restoration of 1850s stone church – Mountville, Va

• Restoration of an 1851 stone/stucco church, for end use as an office.
• Structural repairs of the roof timbers, followed by a new wood roof installation.
• Complete window restoration of the 8 1/2 foot tall double hung windows.
• Interior restoration including flooring, plaster, selected church pews, and the altar area.
• Installed a new electric service, radiant heating in the floor, and air conditioning in the attic space.

 Restoration of Red Rocks Ruins NOVA Parks – Leesburg, VA

• Stabilization of 19th century stone farm structure remains – a granary, a well house, and a carriage house.  They are maintained as ruins, and we restored and pointing the stonework, building new wood jambs for the openings, and working to arrest deterioration.

Consult/Study Sixteenth Century Misericords

I participated in the measuring and identification of a set of sixteenth century misericords. We were able to identify two, possibly three, different carvers based on the method of construction and style of the carvings. This study was for documentation purposes for the development of a book being written for the Ripon Cathedral.