Masonry Magazine October 2005 Page. 36
MASONRY AROUND THE NATION
"We're doing the very same thing
these [masons] did 350
years ago, and it makes
you shiver."
- Jack Peet
Much of the chimney damage resulted from aluminum casing that had been placed over the chimney's cap to prevent water and debris from entering the stack. The casing had not allowed the chimney to "breathe," which Gwilliam said exacerbated the moisture problem.
Linda Osborne, president of the Alden Kindred of America, said the restoration couldn't wait because, if the chimney had toppled, it might have taken half of the house with it.
"It should be a matter of pride for a community that they have the actual physical structures surviving and not just the stories," says Alden House curator Jim Baker.
The project was a powerful experience for the masons.
"All of the sudden, we're doing the very same thing these [masons] did 350 years ago, and it makes you shiver," says Peet. "There's a connection between you and someone
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34 Masonry CIRCLE 165 ON READER SERVICE CARD October 2005
Top: Allen Clary parging inside of repaired kitchen flue.
Bottom: Staging around chinney had to be built in such a way so that nothing touched
the roof or structure of the 17th century Alden House.
you don't even know-especially with brick masons. The tools have not changed a lot."
That connection to the past transformed the work from restorative to investigative, allowing the masonry team to follow their curiosity and begin to unravel some mysteries.
"This is a puzzle," Gwilliam says. As the project progressed, the masons confirmed what legend has held true for decades: the existing house was not the first Alden home in Duxbury. Though the present Alden home was built in 1653, analysts at Columbia University determined that some of the wood from the house's kitchen, roof and sill - the support that runs along the perimeter and bears most of the structure's weight-dated back to 1628.
When the masons reordered new brick to replace damaged sections of the chimney, they discovered another surprise: many of the original bricks came from Cook Brick Plant, a factory that rested on land purchased from an Alden.
Sharing that knowledge with the community moved the house's history from being static to dynamic, says Gwilliam. And it made both the Alden House visitors and the masons think about the restoration and the house's history in a new way.
The mason team has opened up their work to the public before, but never so intimately. Usually the masons keep a five-foot workspace, sectioned off by tape, between them and the onlookers. This time, there was no barrier. And visitors weren't shy about asking questions.
"I didn't really learn history until I started working in restoration," says mason Lawrence Waller. "When you're discussing your work with people, it makes you learn more. You have to push yourself a little bit further. You have to think a little bit deeper."