Conservators Complete Visits to
Veterans' Cemetery Monuments

Testing area on the 34th Massachusetts Infantry Monument, that determined a poultice would be an effective treatment to remove copperstaining on the limestone.

Heritage Preservation is assisting the National Cemetery Administration (NCA) of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs coordinate the preservation of approximately 170 memorials in their cemeteries. In 2010, 80 monuments in 28 cemeteries across the country are being assessed. Conservators' condition reports and treatment recommendations are being filed this summer.

Just before Memorial Day, project director Kristen Laise had the opportunity to observe the site visit at Winchester National Cemetery in Winchester, Virginia. Winchester National Cemetery contains 14 monuments that were installed before 1910, one of the largest collections of older monuments in the NCA system. The monuments commemorate Civil War regiments that fought in and around the Winchester—an area at the northern most point of the Confederacy that saw several significant battles and changed hands more than 70 times during the war.

Conservator Aliya Turner discusses cleaning tests and condition of the joints on the 6th Army Corps monument.

Amy Hollis and Aliya Turner of Architectural Preservation Services (APS) in Baltimore Maryland conducted the assessments. While most the monuments were in stable condition, many will require cleaning to remove soiling and staining that could eventually cause permanent damage to the stone.

 

Because the Winchester site-visit took place the week before Memorial Day, Heritage Preservation took the opportunity to publicize the assessments to local press. Reporters from both area newspapers attended the site visit and wrote articles. A local radio station also did an interview with Kristen Laise and aired clips from it.

APS provides archival and historical research, condition assessments, material analyses, treatment testing, recommendations for repair and maintenance, and construction management and is a division of Worcester Eisenbrandt, Inc. a historic building restoration contractor.

Winchester Radio Spotlight – Part 1

Winchester Radio Spotlight – Part 2

 

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