Accurate Restoration Under Way

Town Helps Raynham Hall Museum Renovation Project

By Dagmar Fors Karppi

When John Venditto was Town of Oyster Bay Supervisor Elect, he visited Raynham Hall Museum. He told the guide, "We're going to fix this up." He was enthusiastic and raring to go, was the report.

Standing is Philip Calzone. The interior window opens onto the staircase that leads to the first floor.
Joe Calzone of Calzone Plasterers, located in the Glen Head/Glen Cove area, is a third generation plasterer. "We do it the old time way," he said.

His words were his bond, as the saying goes. Town workers have been busy at Raynham Hall repairing damage done in a fire about five years ago. The town, which is responsible for the maintenance of the museum building, had their workers do all the underlaying carpentry work that had to be done.

Tuesday, April 7, the plasterers were working in one of the small second floor rooms. "Thanks to the town. They had to start the ball rolling. The town crew did all the preparation," said Victoria Schirado, director of Raynham Hall Museum. "It took a huge piece of time and money.

"They have also helped me in the sub-contracting - who we hired based on their background in doing historical work. The rest of what remains goes to specialists," she said. "Hopefully, we'll be able to keep the momentum going."

Finishing the second floor will enable the museum staff to all have their offices on the same floor. Currently there are offices on the first and third floors. "This will give us more usable space and allow us to work on the kitchen area next," she said. "Thanks to the town!

"When the third floor is free, it will allow us to isolate it for collection space."

Since the renovation work on the second floor is being done historically accurate, if they decide to interpret that space in the future, all the plaster work is authentic, she said. "We are rebuilding a chimney that exists on the second floor - we don't need it for an office, but eventually it can be an interpretive space."

The second floor could be interpreted as servants' quarters and could show how the living spaces differed between servants and families during the Victorian era.

Currently, the plan is to create a working 1870s kitchen. "We know the kind of stove we want, but don't have one in our possession."

The kitchen is presently used for crafts classes. The museum offers rug hooking; knitting and crocheting classes three times a year. During the summer the space is used for a Children's Summer Workshop.