On a pleasant Sunday afternoon a few weeks ago at Fort Hoskins Historical Park, a preservation specialist and a small group of volunteers worked upstairs on the old, original chimney in the Commander’s House.
Although the event took place on April 21, it served as a jumping-off point for Benton County’s workshops and activities related to recognizing May as National Historic Preservation Month. In this particular activity, preservation specialist Carol Chin helped educate participants on the repointing of the historic chimney using lime-based mortar.
“The brickwork and the mortar itself are actually in much better shape than I thought — at least down where we’re working toward the top,” Chin said while taking a break and stepping out onto the historic house’s upstairs porch. “The area that’s exposed above the roof, that’s probably going to be a lot more work.”
The Commander’s House was constructed in the 1850s to monitor movements of Native Americans in the Oregon Coast region. During the Civil War, it was home to the Army post’s commanding officer and his family. By 1865, it had been decommissioned, sold at auction and moved to Pedee where it became a private residence.
In 2012, Oregon State University archaeologist David Brauner confirmed the house’s origin and Benton County purchased it. Later that year, it was moved back to its original location at Fort Hoskins.
Chin explained the chimney repointing process.
“The mortar is sort of the sacrificial part of the brick system,” she said. “So you want to maintain your bricks and expect to have to renew the mortar. That’s just part of the maintenance of a masonry structure.”
To the general observer, it could be perceived that the chimney was in bad shape. Of course, it should be remembered that the house is more than 165 years old.
“Most of it is the original … they did have to renew some of the mortar when the building was moved, so there’s some of that,” Chin said, adding that there is some Portland cement mortar that had been used.
Lime mortar, Chin said, is the traditional type used in such projects. The mortar sets in around 72 hours but overall, it’s a slow process.
“It takes months for it to cure because it’s a reaction between the lime, which is the calcium hydroxide, and CO2 from the air,” Chin said. “So it takes a long time for that exchange.”
Jesse Ott, Natural Areas Parks and Events interim executive director, said the lime mortar was ordered from a company based in Pennsylvania.
“We’ll work our way through this chimney and this is just the start,” Ott said about the Commander’s House chimney restoration project. “She’s teaching our staff and then we’ll get a couple of volunteers trained up and a couple of contractors that we know that can help us and eventually we’ll get up on a lift and do the chimney that’s exposed and the one downstairs.”
The event was a collaborative effort between the Benton County Historic Resources Commission, Benton County Community Development and Natural Areas, Parks, and Events Department.
Ott became familiar with Chin last year through an event involving the Alliance for Recreation and Natural Areas, an organization that raises money to help support efforts to restore the Commander’s House.
“Last year, we had a band and Carol came to visit and she was just a curious party and had heard about the event and had never been out here before. And then we found out she knows all kinds of stuff about chimney repointing and historic preservation and so we kind of roped her into our group.”
Chin said the work behind chimney repointing is actually fairly easy.
“It’s not technically difficult — it’s just a few little skills and tricks,” she said. “We thought this would be a good one to start with.”
Chin was introduced to chimney repointing while in Louisiana at the National Park Service’s National Center for Preservation Technology and Training, a research and education facility located on the campus of Northwestern State University that focuses on historic preservation through the use of science and technology.
“And then I was working on my own house while I was there and had a bunch of old masonry that I needed to restore,” she said. “So, it’s just a skill that I picked up.”
Chin lived in Corvallis for 17 years, left and came back last year, so she has a general knowledge of historic locations around Benton County.
“We were fortunate to have a couple of contractors who showed up and so it was nice to have them here with their experience so they can actually demonstrate,” Chin said about the workshop.
Chin said the project will take some time.
“We’ve got to do the downstairs part of it and everything else,” Chin said. “We may do another workshop or we may just have some volunteers come in and do some more of the work.”
A few events have already occurred but the Benton County Historic Resources Commission’s Historic Preservation Month still has several more opportunities coming up:
• Thursday, May 9 (3:30-5 p.m.) — South Central Park Neighborhood Walking Tour with Doug Eaton. Meets in front of the The Arts Center, 700 SW Madison Ave., Corvallis. Click here for information.
• Sunday, May 12 (2-4 p.m.) — Oregon State University Walking Tour with Larry Landis. Registration required; limited to 25 people. Click here for more information, including an email address to register.
• Saturday, May 18 (10 a.m.-3 p.m.) — Cemetery cleaning workshop at Kings Valley Cemetery with David Pinyerd and Bernadette Niederer of Historic Preservation Northwest. The cemetery is located on Kings Valley Highway just north of the intersection with Hoskins Road. Click here for more information.
• Monday, May 20 (6-8 p.m.) — How to Research the History of Your House with Camron Settlemeier. Meets at Corvallis Museum, 411 SW Second St., Corvallis. Click here for more information.
• Wednesday, May 22 (1-2 p.m.) — Atomic Ranch Tour with Doug Sackinger. Meets at the intersection of Northwest Lincoln Avenue and Northwest 15th Street, Corvallis. Click here for more information.
• Wednesday, May 22 (5:30-6:30 p.m.) — Masonic Temple Tour. Located at 306 SW Madison Ave., Corvallis. Registration required; limited to 25 people. Click here for more information, including an email address to register.
• Saturday, May 25 (Noon-4 p.m.) — Interior tours of the Willamette Grange Hall with Jay Sexton. Located at 27555 Greenberry Road, Corvallis. Guided tour times are 12:15, 1:15 and 2:15 p.m., although the building is open to view the entire time. Click here for more information.
• Thursday, May 30 (2:30-5 p.m.) — Owens Farm: Past and Present with Jessica McDonald, executive director of Greenbelt Land Trust. Located north of Corvallis just off Highway 99W. Registration required. Click here for more information, including a link to register.
• Thursday, May 30 (6-8 p.m.) — Bridging History: Historic Preservation Celebration. Meets at LaSells Stewart Center, Oregon State University, Corvallis. Click here for more information.
• Wednesday, June 12 (2-3 p.m.) — Franklin School Neighborhood Trees Walking Tour with Lyn Larson. Meets at Franklin School, 750 NW 18th St., Corvallis. Click here for more information.
There are also some events in Albany. For a rundown, go online to the commission’s website for a listing.
