Menokin: Rubble With A Cause

What do you do with an 18th-century house that is probably the best documented tidewater mansion in Virginia; is a National Historic Landmark; and  exists in thousands of pieces?

The answer, developed by the Foundation’s founding members, is “something different.” The result is Menokin, not your every day house museum.

Careful years of archaeological excavation of the collapsed pieces of the house have resulted in a vast collection of framing timbers, stone and pristine interior paneling that are housed on the Menokin property.

 

Each is tagged, numbered and cataloged in an extensive database to show where it came out of the ruin, as well as where it fit into the original structure of the house.

Students check out the tagging system on each artifact extracted from the house. The tag tells the year the piece was extracted, and which number piece it was to be extracted.

Yet the house itself is in a very precarious condition, and the foundation’s attempts to stabilize and protect what remains have been only temporarily successful, as mother nature continues to wage her war on this vulnerable structure.

The concept of replacing the missing pieces of the house with architectural glass was introduced in 2006. After years of careful planning and thoughtful exploration of the possibilities of making this concept a reality, The Menokin Foundation moved forward with searching for the right team to lead the effort.

That search was completed in late 2011 with the hiring of the architecture firm of Machado and Silvetti Associates, LLC.

The concept and planning phase of The Menokin Project is well underway. Follow along as we reveal the step-by-step process of this revolutionary historic preservation and conservation project. And experience the stories of Menokin, then and now.

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