I. Troy, lifted. Photo by Tim Sweeney

Sill Life with Woodpecker

Frames rot from the bottom up. Water condenses on the foundation and rots the sill from below, or enters at the eaves and runs down the wall framing, rotting the sill from above. Some sills are sunk by splash back. In the dead of night, sill rot can haunt you; it seems catastrophic. But rotten…

Kitchen of the Community

New Hampshire Preservation Alliance recently released an inspiring video about the restoration of the Acworth Meetinghouse. Built by Elias Carter in 1821, the Acworth Meetinghouse, with its double lantern spire, is a masterful representation of historic building craft. In 2008, the steeple and undercarriage were repaired by local craftspeople trained and supervised by PTF in techniques unique to steeple repair,…

Abyssinian Meetinghouse, photo by Troy R. Bennet for the Bangor Daily News

Abyssinian Meetinghouse listed as one of America’s 11 Most Endangered Properties

Last week, the National Trust for Historic Preservation announced it’s list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Properties.  The Abyssinian Meetinghouse had the dubious distinction of making it on the list.  Inclusion on the list indicates the importance of the third-oldest standing African-American meetinghouse in our nation’s history, but also sheds light upon the lack of…

Our Biggest Fan

In 1900, Charles Goodhue drew this sketch from the memory of an elderly parishioner.  This is one of the only remaining images that depict the building from this era.  Fortunately, evidence within the building has proven this sketch to be remarkably accurate. From the beginning of our involvement in the project, we have been looking…

Press on Preservation

Last week, PTF was featured in two more articles, these ones about developments at the Abyssinian.  The DownEast article focuses on the social history of the building as well as the people responsible for its restoration.  It contains some of my favorite stories about the building, including its origin story, and how it was saved…

Traditional Repair of the Abyssinian Meetinghouse

Built in 1828, the Abyssinian Meetinghouse is the third oldest African American meetinghouse in the country.  PTF was fortunate to join the restoration project in 2005, removing the tenement apartments inside, and repairing the king post truss frame.  In 2010, we rebuilt the cornice, and completed the roof and basement phases. In October 2010, archaeologists dug around the…

Sill Crazy After All These Years

We’ve begun work on the Abyssinian Meetinghouse again.  Last week, archaeologists dug test pits in the basement and driveway, while we worked on cutting a new front sill.  After years of damage, no part of the original front sill could be saved. Click on the photos below for a complete description.