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Viking Ship at the Columbian Exposition in 1893. |
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| The Viking Ship at Good Templar Park |
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| This hand-tinted print shows the Viking Ship in full color as it docked at Chicago accompanied by the Battleship Illinois. |
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THE VIKING SHIP WINS GRANT FROM Partners in Preservation
See details below. |
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Who
Are We? |
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Membership in Preservation Partners
For three decades, members of Preservation Partners
have been vital supporters of our basic mission; they have
been our partners in a critical task - ensuring that our vintage
buildings , our older neighborhoods, our streetscapes with
splendid architectural diversity are recognized for their
economic and historic significance. Just as important, these
members have provided essential support for our museum operations,
enabling us to reach over 100,000 school children at our 3
sites, providing them with a very tangible connection to their
roots.
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Why Join
Us? |
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Membership Benefits:
- Quarterly Newsletter - The Preservation Advocate
- Old House Support Group programs & tours
limited to members only
- Invitations to special museum events, including
Japanese Garden concerts, Summer Frolic & Apple
Fest at Durant Museum, & annual Star Members' Dinner
Together, we can safeguard
our Fox Valley heritage!
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How To Join? |
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Become a Preservation
Partner:
- Preservation Guardian
- Presevation Leader
- Presevation Advocate
- Preservation Patron
- Donor
- Family
- Individual
Membship contributions
above $30 are tax-deductible
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| Simply print and fill out the
above form
and mail, along with your payment, to Preservation
Partners. |
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Resources |
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Preservation Resources Library
Located at our Beith House Headquarters in St. Charles, this library contains books, professional journals and articles on a variety of preservation issues, including decorative arts, American architecture, restoration of vintage buildings, design guidelines, antique furniture, and period gardens. Members of Preservation Partners may borrow these materials, while the general public is welcome to browse during regular Beith House hours - 9-3, M-F. Appointments are recommended. Contact: 630-377-6424
Old House Support Group
Founded in 1991, this informal group was designed to assist owners of historic buildings to meet a variety of renovation challenges. Annual programs on practical topics are held at area libraries and are open to the public at no charge. Members of Preservation Partners are invited 2-3 times a year to house tours which showcase recently completed renovations.
Architectural Walking Tours
Each spring and fall, expert guides offer walking tours in older Geneva neighborhoods, primarily in the designated Historic Districts. These are open to the public at no charge, and include the following routes:
- Fifth Street on Foot!
- First Street to Fifth, on Foot!
- First Street to Fourth, on Foot!
- Geneva on the Move - north side neighborhood
Fix-It Guide to Preservation Services & Suppliers
Co-sponsored by the Kane County Historic Preservation Commission and Preservation Partners, this pocket guide to preservation resources was issued in 1992 and 1995; it is currently out-of-print but plans are underway to update this Guide and offer it on-line. Look for news of this in early 2005. To see a working list of the Fix-It Guide that we are currently updating please click here:
vendors working copy
General Programs
Preservation Partners offers annual programs at local libraries on a variety of topics related to historic preservation and museum features. Recent programs have focused on vintage clothing, Japanese Gardens in four seasons, historic landscaping, and the teardown-infill trend. Programs are open to the general public at no charge. To be placed on this mailing list, contact 630-377-6424.
Preservation Issues
The Board of Preservation Partners attends meetings of local historic preservation commissions to follow current issues and to determine which merit additional attention, publicity, or follow-up workshops. The Preservation Advocate newsletter will showcase these issues, when appropriate.
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Advocacy |
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1893 Viking Ship Wins Grant!
One of 14 recipients
The corporate giant American Express has teamed up with the National Trust for Historic Preservation to offer a splendid opportunity for 25 cultural landmarks in the Chicago metro area. This civic-minded team named their joint enterprise Partners in Preservation (PIP) when they debuted this program in San Francisco in the fall of 2006.
The Viking Ship located in Good Templar Park in Geneva made the short list of 25 candidates eligible for grants. Grant recipients were announced on November 13th. The Viking Ship, which came in tied for second in the public voting, received the full amount requested! This grant will ensure a professional evaluation of the ship, and a result in a meticulousr stabilization of this historic structure.
The Viking Ship was built in Norway in 1892, an exact replica of the c. 880 Gokstad Viking ship, and undertook a perilous journey across the north Atlantic, making its way through the St. Lawrence Seaway and the Great Lakes to arrive in Chicago for the 1893 Columbian Exposition. It was a major attraction at the World’s Fair, partly because of its amazing journey and in part because it was a remarkable emblem of the sailing skills and technology of early Vikings.
After spending seven decades in Chicago’s Lincoln Park, where it was largely ignored, the Viking headed to West Chicago for an overhaul in 1992 and ended up at Good Templar Park two years later.
A committee of local and Chicago-area citizens has banded together to launch a rescue mission for the Ship, to stabilize the structure and to preserve it in a museum setting for future generations. In the short term, a substantial contribution from the Kane County Community Development Block Grant funds will be used to hire a marine conservator to complete a professional evaluation of the condition of the ship. Preservation Partners and the Norwegian National League are also helping to finance this survey, which will result in detailed recommendations for the stabilization phase of the rescue project ---this hopefully will be underwritten by the PIP grant!
The public may visit the Viking Ship on Sunday, September 16, from 1 – 5 PM, in its current “safe harbor” at the Good Templar Park in Geneva. Guides will be on hand to describe the amazing saga of this ship and to point out the unique construction features that allowed the ship to speed across the Atlantic in four weeks.
More information about the Open House is available at (630) 377-6424. It will be free to the public, though donations to support the rescue mission are most welcome. |
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***Viking Ship Mania*** |
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The Viking Ship Stabilization Project offically began on Monday, June 16th, when the 21st Century "Crew" of marine conservators arrived at Good Templar Park armed with their tools and an infectious enthusiam!
The team consists of Bob Fink (and his trusty canine assistant) from Renaissance Yachts in Maryland. Three staff members from Chicago's own Methods and Materials, who specialize in large-scale museum installations - sounds like a perfect fit!- complete the expert crew.
The weather was perfect for the first full week on site. The four specialists moved quickly to place structural supports on both the exterior and interior of the ship... Enjoy the action shots below!
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Luke from M&M welds the steel beam that will become an exterior custom-fit support. |
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Mike and Luke from M&M are assisted by Bob Fink and Cantigny Volunteer, Andrew Woods as they prepare to move part of the original planking, oars, and mast to an adjacent pavilion. Zach, in the foreground, supervised. |
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Bob demonstrates how the wooden support beam clamped to the stern will help return the ship to its "true" form. |
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