Dry Wall Day at Haller House! The day it starts looking like a house again!
One if by land & two if by sea!
Celebrating the 250th anniversary of
Paul Revere’s famous ride!
Schedule of Events
Sunday, April 13
“The truer story of Paul Revere’s Ride”
a history talk with historian Lynn Hyde
Coupeville Library
788 NW Alexander Street
6:30 p.m., (admission is free, in-person only)
Friday, April 18
For Kids: Reading of Longfellow’s famous poem,
“The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere”
Kingfisher Book Store
16 Front Street NW
10:00 a.m. – preschoolers, with Meg Olson
4:00 p.m. – elementary schoolers, with Joann Roomes
Evening: SHHH! Express messenger
Paul Revere rides from Boston
with urgent news from the Sons of Liberty!!
Island County Historical Museum
908 NW Alexander Street
7:45 p.m., reception & reading by Patrick Hussey to follow
Bring your lanterns!! TELL NO TORIES!!
For more information contact: coupevillechamber.com
(360) 678-5434, ext. 102
Thank you to Humanities Washington!
Historic Whidbey would like to thank:
for their generous award of a SHARP grant during the recent pandemic.
Their support helped keep our engine running!
Funding for Historic Whidbey has been provided by Humanities Washington and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) approved by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Joseph R. Biden. This 2022 SHARP grant (Sustaining Humanities through the American Rescue Plan) was indispensable, enabling us to continue our mission through the the Covid-19 pandemic.
Our board extends their deepest gratitude!
Pullin' Nails
While winter delays construction progress, Historic Whidbey has been planning out 2023 and what we hope to get done. A lot of projects are on the list for 2023, and we are really excited to share those with you in the future.
With the help some active Board Members, we have completed the arduous process of removing the thousands (literally) of nails that once held the old lathe boards to the wall. Unfortunately, the plaster was not in good enough condition to keep, so the decision was made to remove the old plaster and put-up drywall as well as additional structural pieces that will assist the house to remain standing for much longer in the future. Even to endure large earthquakes.
NOTE: The old lathe boards are available for sale at Aqua Gifts across the street. These roughly ~12in long boards are bundled together and only cost $5 each. This bundle is great for kindling, enjoying in your fireplace or while out camping. I have also heard a few people have decorated with these old boards, so the opportunities are endless. Recycling and supporting a local cause, we make it pretty easy!
Remember to hit that donate button below to keep our train chugging along and getting more and more projects done!
Getting a new coat!
The lovely weather we’ve been having has given us the chance to begin the arduous task of re-siding and paint the house. We have enlisted the help of Sound Colors Painting. You can see them this week spraying and scraping the prep for primer. If we are lucky, we may even, see some color start popping up of the building this year!
Yellow! While prepping the house for work we actively removed baseboard, sanded wood, and scraped a century worth of old paint to find the original color. We believe this is the oldest color on the house. Using Benjamin Moore’s historical collection, we matched this with a lovely light ochre for the siding and a butternut squash color trim.
However, for the winter the house will only be primed. So, the yellow you see now is not the final stage of color. In spring we will put the final coats on and watch the house blossom along with the flowers.
Remember, none of this is possible without your help. Keep us moving forward with a donation today!
The conservatory is reborn!
Passersby in downtown Coupeville are happy to see—at long last— serious progress in the rehabilitation of the full exterior of the Haller House . This dream deferred—of the return of the 1866 Haller House to Front Street life—is finally being realized! Our Heritage Capital grant helps fund the reconstruction of the Hallers’ conservatory bay, the structural stabilization of the failing plank walls of the Brunn House ell, installation of two new ADA entrance doors in the Brunn ell, repair and painting of all clapboard siding. It will also help fund the installation of new house systems: water, power and heat in 2023. We hope you share our happy satisfaction in this progress.
Our Conservatory Window CamPANE was been a huge success! Following a windowengraving tradition popular in England and America in the 18th & 19th centuries, we have offered our “Haller House family” the chance to engrave their names on one of 94 new panes in the new conservatory windows. We are sold out and have been the long process of manufacturing the special panes that will be with the house forever.
