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Building Conservation Associates

Stucco

Aiken-Rhett-House

Aiken Rhett House Location: Charleston, South CarolinaYear Built: 1817 Owned and operated by Historic Charleston Foundation (HCF), the Aiken-Rhett House is nationally recognized as one of the few remaining examples of an early 19th-century urban townhouse complex in the United States. It survives with its main house as well as associated dependencies on its original building lot in Charleston. BCA led the creation of a Feasibility Study which made key recommendations for improvements to the site’s stewardship, visitation, and staff capacity, and provided Historic Charleston Foundation with...

Ca’D'Zan

Ca’D'Zan Location: Sarasota, FloridaOriginal Architect: Dwight James BaumYear Built: 1926 Located in Sarasota, Florida, Ca’d’Zan is the former winter residence of John and Mabel Ringling. Designed by Dwight James Baum, the mansion and estate were constructed from 1924-1926. Ca’ d’Zan, which means House of John in Venetian, is a contributing element in the Caples’-Ringlings' Estates Historic District listed on the National Register of Historic Places. John Ringling was one of five brothers internationally known for their ownership of "The Greatest Show on Earth", the Ringling Brothers and Barnum...

Georgia O’Keeffe House and Studio

Georgia O’Keeffe House and Studio Location: Abiquiu, New MexicoOriginal Architect: Maria ChabotYear Built: 1744, 1949 The 20th century American artist, Georgia O’Keeffe, acquired a 19th c. traditional adobe house in Abiqui, New Mexico in 1945 and transformed it into a “modern” Home and Studio. The Home and Studio that resulted from O’Keeffe’s changes to the building, as well as her 45 years of occupancy, embody her modernist aesthetic. The Museum engaged a multidisciplinary team, including BCA, to determine the condition and preservation risks of the site and structures. The team combined research...

Hamilton Grange

Hamilton Grange Location: New York, New YorkOriginal Architect: John McComb Jr.Year Built: 1802 Hamilton Grange is believed to be the only home owned by Alexander Hamilton, one of the United States’ founding fathers. Hamilton built this Federal style country house in 1801-02. Hamilton Grange was moved in 2008, to a site one block away within St. Nicholas Park. After the move was completed, the restoration of the exterior and interior began. This project focused on completing the interior and exterior architectural restoration and rehabilitation, including building and site improvements and...

Museo De Arte de Ponce

Museo De Arte de Ponce Location: Ponce, Puerto Rico Original Architect: Edward Durell StoneYear Built: 1965 Designed by architect Edward Durrell Stone and completed in 1965, Museo de Arte de Ponce is located in Ponce, Puerto Rico and is the largest museum in the Caribbean. Constructed of concrete and stucco, the Museo is a classic example of Modern architecture. This project involved the restoration of the exterior envelope. As the restoration consultant, BCA conducted a hands-on conditions assessment of the exterior stucco and concrete, performed field and laboratory materials testing,...

Samara

Samara Location: Lafayette, Indiana Original Architect: Frank Lloyd Wright Year Built: 1956 BCA was the historic materials consultant for Samara, the John and Catherine Christian House, located in West Lafayette, Indiana. Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and completed in 1956, Samara is an example of Wright’s Usonian house design. It became a National Historic Landmark in 2015, the same year that Dr. Christian died, and the house became a full-time museum open to the public. BCA’s work provided information about the house’s original materials to inform the current restoration project. The...

The Mount

The Mount Location: Lennox, Massachusetts Year Built: 1902 The Mount, Edith Wharton’s classically inspired 113-acre estate and gardens in Lenox, MA, was constructed in 1902 and is a National Historic Landmark. The estate grounds include the Main House, the Stables, the Gatehouse and Greenhouse. BCA has worked with The Mount from 2012 to the present. During this time, BCA has provided historic preservation and architectural conservation consulting services for several projects, including: The Stable, the Mount Terrace, the Forecourt Walls, and currently the Gatehouse. BCA conducted building...

Vanderbilt Mansion

Vanderbilt Mansion Location: Hyde Park, New York Original Architect: McKim, Mead & WhiteYear Built: 1896-1899 Vanderbilt Mansion, designed by McKim, Mead, and White and built from 1896 to 1899, was used as a vacation home for Frederick Vanderbilt and is now a National Historic Site operated by the National Park Service (NPS). The grand Beaux-Arts estate has 54 rooms and is constructed of of Indiana Limestone. BCA was retained by the National Park Service to perform an on-site examination of the ceiling of the Dining Room. The ceiling was brought from Italy by Stanford White and installed...

Amtrak

Amtrak BCA holds a term contract with Amtrak for Environmental and Historic Preservation Services. BCA’s key responsibilities include: preparing Section 106 documentation packages; consulting with Amtrak project managers to determine Section 106 needs; coordinating with the NEPA process and Amtrak NEPA staff; conducting Section 106 consulting party outreach and follow-up; and applying technical expertise in reviewing consultant products and performing preservation design review on behalf of Amtrak. Recent projects completed through BCA’s contract include an archeological assessment of the...

Bach House

Bach House Location: Chicago, IllinoisYear Built: 1915Original Architect: Frank Lloyd Wright The Bach House was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for Emil Bach, owner of the Bach Brick Company, and built in 1915. The house is one of Wright’s last small urban commissions and is one of only a few Frank Lloyd Wright houses in the City of Chicago. The simple and compact house is “semi-cubist” in design. The geometry of the design is accentuated by the placement of specific materials as well as colors on the exterior, making the material choice and color palette an important part of Wright’s original...

Baruch College

Baruch College Baruch College is one of the senior colleges in the City University of New York (CUNY) system. Founded in 1847 as the Free Academy, it was the first institution to offer free higher education to the public in the United States. BCA served as historic preservation consultant on a variety of projects over twenty years. Newman Library The Lexington Avenue Cable Car Company was transformed into the Newman Library by Baruch College in the early 1990s. BCA was responsible for the entire restoration of the brick and terra cotta façade of this Italian Renaissance-style building. Vertical...

Connecticut State Capitol

Connecticut State Capitol Location: Hartford, Connecticut Year Built: 1871-1878 Original Architect: Richard Upjohn  The Connecticut State Capitol was designed by Richard Upjohn in the Eastlake style with French and Gothic Revival elements and constructed from 1871-78. Located in Hartford, it is the third capitol building for the State of Connecticut since the American Revolution. A National Historic Landmark designated by the National Park Service and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Connecticut State Capitol is constructed of marble quarried in East Canaan, Connecticut,...

First Battery Armory

First Battery Armory Location: New York, New York Year Built: 1903Original Architect: Horgan & Slattery The 1903 former First Battery Armory at 56 West 66th Street, designed by architects Horgan & Slattery, is an individual New York City Landmark and is one of a few extant historic armories in New York City. From 1903 until 1977 the building served as a National Guard armory. From 1977 until 2010, it was used as a television studio and is often referred to as the Disney Armory. It currently holds ESPN cable company offices. The project consisted of exterior and interior rehabilitation...

Monumental Church

Monumental Church Location: Richmond, VirginiaYear Built: 1812-1814Original Architect: Robert Mills The Monumental Church was designed by Robert Mills in 1812-1814 and is located in Richmond, Virginia. The Greek Revival building is considered one of the best examples of its kind in the United States, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1971. It is currently owned by Historic Richmond. The octagonal portion of the building is constructed of brick with stucco and the portico is constructed of Aquia Creek sandstone. During an exterior restoration campaign in 2003 stucco was applied...

Old North Church

Old North Church Location: Boston, MassachusettsYear Built: 1723Original Architects: William Price The Old North Church, built in 1722, is the oldest standing church building in Boston, and a National Historic Landmark. The Georgian style structure was designed by William Price but was modeled after the work of Christopher Wren who had built several famous buildings in London. BCA reviewed prior studies of the decorative finishes, and performed paint analysis and probes to determine the architectural history of the sanctuary walls, trim, decorative elements and pews. Some elements of the early...

The Woodlands

The Woodlands Location: Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaYear Built: 1770Original Architect: William Hamilton BCA was involved with two projects at the Woodlands, a cemetery located in West Philadelphia that dates to the mid-nineteenth century. The site retains two historic buildings, the Hamilton Mansion and stable, both of which date to the time the cemetery site was owned by gentlemen botanist William Hamilton. Built in two campaigns between 1770 and 1789, the mansion features rubble stone wall wings, a stucco central block, a two-story portico and a brick cryptoporticus in front of the mansion...