Breathing life back into historic buildings

SALISBURY — The historic Academy Building at the corner of Main and Academy streets in Salisbury village is getting an internal facelift, 1833-style.Interior designer and Salisbury resident Chris Brennan, who is overseeing the project, took a visitor last week to the second floor, which is being transformed into a modern work, storage and meeting place.In the center of the room will be two rows of storage cabinets facing in, with molding that mimics the original window molding downstairs.Opposite the storage cabinets will be two rows of modern filing cabinets facing out, and two workstations with computer hookups.A sorely needed bookcase is being added on the Main Street side of the room, and on the opposite side, where the judges’ bench used to be during the building’s tenure as a courthouse, will be a conference table.The work area atop the storage and file cabinets will be nice and wide, which will please Town Historian Katherine Chilcoat, according to Brennan.There will also be flat storage for maps and charts, another feature that addresses a long-standing need.The wooden storage cabinets were crafted by Jeff Crawford of Great Barrington, Mass.The second floor enjoys considerable natural light from all sides, and to complement that, schoolhouse lights — large opaque white bowls that provide bright but diffuse light — will be installed. Brennan said there was some discussion of restoring the wideboard flooring upstairs, which would involve removing the existing wood floor and assorted gunk. The decision was ultimately made to go with carpeting.“But there’s nothing done here that’s not reversible,” Brennan said.Downstairs the linoleum is slated for removal, and the wideboard flooring will be exposed. The existing work space will be reconfigured, and possibly more exhibition space created as a result.Brennan noted that the work is all privately funded.Era of Elegance talksBrennan and Salisbury School teacher and historian Geoff Rossano are kicking off the Era of Elegance series of lectures Saturday, Jan. 28, at 4 p.m. with “Architectural Exteriors and Interiors, 1750-1860.” The lecture, which will be held in the Wardell Community Room, focuses on houses in Salisbury from the late 1700s to mid-1800s.Brennan said the talk will include examples of the Georgian, Federal, Greek Revival, Italianate and Gothic styles, both inside and out.The styles sometimes became intermingled. Brennan said she had just finished taking photographs of Holleywood’s interior, in particular the hallway as one enters.Alexander Hamilton Holley built the house (on the shores of Lake Wononscopomuc, just off the Millerton Road) in 1853 in the Italianate style, but when Holley became governor his wife, realizing the need for larger rooms for entertaining, made several changes. The house was recently purchased and is undergoing extensive restoration work, in part under Brennan’s direction (to see the work in progress, go online to www.bringingbackholleywood.com/restoration-diary.html).One result is the main hallway, which combines a mix of the Italianate, Greek Revival and Gothic styles.“People would pick and choose between different elements,” Brennan said. “It’s really fascinating.”The lecture is Saturday, Jan. 28, at 4 p.m. in the Wardell Community Room of the Scoville Memorial Library, and is sponsored by the library and the Salisbury Association Historical Society.