Masonry Restoration Completed!

Matching Funds Still Needed to Complete Exterior of the

Church of the Presidents

-- Remaining work includes front & rear walls, shingle repair, and paint --

The Long Branch Historical Museum Association (LBHMA) has completed the restoration/repair of the masonry that comprises the lower exterior walls of the Church of the Presidents – about 65 percent of which had to be reconstructed. Reinforced concrete footings were also installed wherever the masonry was reconstructed.

The masonry walls served as the foundation of the 1879 building. Over the years, the bricks were painted, resulting in their deterioration and the foundation’s buckling and ultimate destabilization. This instability forced the museum to close and its artifacts and windows removed in 1999. A $250,000 stabilization project (Phase I of a four-phase preservation plan), consisting of the interior installation of steel L-brackets, was completed in 2003, saving the structure from impending collapse.

The masonry project is part of the preservation plan’s Phase II, which addresses restoration of the building’s exterior. The cost (in excess of $400,000) was partially funded by New Jersey History Trust (NJHT) and Monmouth County Historical Commission (MCHC) grants, as well as private donations.

The $467,296 NJHT grant was also granted to help restore and replicate the exterior clapboard, weatherboard, moldings, panels, and decoratively-cut shingles along the sides and back walls of the church, as well as the lower portion of the crenellated tower. A matching grant from MCHC has also been awarded for part of this work. Both of these grants, however, must be matched dollar-for-dollar to secure the grant funding, with construction payments expended by the LBHMA reimbursed, rather than provided up front.