Beaumont, TX; August 4, 2023 – The first part of Phase 2 of the McFaddin-Ward House electrical upgrade, which has focused on plaster repair work and painting, is nearing completion.
Over the past two months, the team from Rutledge Paint Company of Vidor has been hard at work patching up areas where electrical work required cutting into walls and ceilings, texturing as needed, and repainting. Areas of trim and baseboard also received repairs and fresh coats of paint. More than 30 shades of paint were needed for the job as each room required different colors. Matching shades proved to be a bit of a challenge, but the team worked diligently to ensure a seamless finish in every spot. All walls and ceilings on the first two floors of the historic house have been completed.
While the first two floors called for new paint, the third floor walls are covered in unique papers from Bradbury and Bradbury, a California company that specializes in reproducing 19th and 20th century wallpapers. Bradbury & Bradbury furnished the wall and ceiling paper for the third floor when it was restored and opened to the public in 2006 and are again supplying identical wall and ceiling paper as we refresh these areas as part of the electrical upgrade to the historic house. The new wallpaper is on the way, and installation will begin soon.
The second part of Phase 2, which includes a thorough interior cleaning, reset of the house’s furniture, and reinstallation of interpretation objects, is already underway. As repairs and painting in each room wrapped, our curatorial team and museum technicians have been busy restoring the house to its former glory. The hardwood floors and furniture have been polished to a brilliant shine, rugs and draperies are being thoroughly cleaned and vacuumed, and furniture and objects are returning to their respective rooms.
Work on restoring and rewiring the house’s historic light fixtures continues at Crenshaw Lighting in Floyd, Virginia with a projected return in late September.
Current plans for our grand reopening are for late October/early November following reinstallation of the light fixtures.
