Museletter IGNITE your curiosity. DISCOVER your story. SEPTEMBER 2019 GLEN EYRIE CASTLE: Looking toward Book Hall, ca., 1905, CSPM Collection
PHOTOS: Views of cassone prior to restoration. Preserving Palmer’s Cassone BY CAITLIN SHARP, CSPM REGISTRAR Cassone after restoration. Among Palmer’s Steinway grand piano and Queen’s dress, you might spy a large trunk as part of the Glen Eyrie vignette in the new exhibit, Evidence: Finding the Facts About General William Jackson Palmer. This trunk, called a cassone, was owned by the Palmers and donated to the CSPM by descendants of the Helen Hunt Jackson Family in 2015. A cassone is an Italian chest that features ornate designs and was traditionally given to a bride by her parents as part of her dowry. While we do not know how and when the Palmers acquired it, we have numerous historic photographs of Glen Eyrie which show similar trunks in the residence, like the one in the cover photo. This beautifully carved trunk includes two prominent figures on the front as well as feet that are carved to look like dogs. While museums and individuals strive to preserve artifacts, wood is very susceptible to damage. Changing temperature and humidity fluctuations weaken wood, causing it to expand then contract which often leads to permanent damage resulting in warping and splits. Certain pests, such as woodborers, powderpost beetles, and termites, survive by consuming wood and cause significant losses. MUSELETTER SEPTEMBER 2019| PG 2
Plus, as any individual knows, it is easy to damage wood with just a bit of water. When the cassone arrived at the museum, time and environmental damage had taken its toll. One of the decorative feet was damaged and there were several splits in the wood, water stains, and insect damage. In order to prepare the trunk for exhibit, museum staff consulted with conservator, Mark Minor. While museum staff practice preventative conservation and condition report artifacts before during and after exhibit use, major conservation requires the expertise of a trained professional. Luckily, Colorado is the home of Mark Minor, a highly trained artifacts conservator. Mark began his conservation career by training as a furniture maker. In 1986, he was one of seven students selected in the first Furniture Conservation Program at the Conservation Analytical Laboratory of the Smithsonian Institution which included an internship at the De Young Museum in San Francisco. During this time, he worked on contract in the Department of Objects Conservation at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and was later hired as an Assistant Conservator. Mark has had a private conservation practice in Colorado since 1993 and has treated artifacts from the Denver Art Museum, History Colorado, the Museums of New Mexico, and other regional and national museums. In the past few years, Mark has performed conservation work on the Hayes-Davis Carriage and the Ege Clock for the CSPM. Carved foot before restoration. An important facet of conservation work is that every procedure or treatment performed must be reversible. The main aim of conservation work is to preserve the integrity of the original artifact, with improvements to its appearance being only secondary. Conservators perform a range of tasks including: cleaning, repairing damage, re-shaping, and reassembling as well as coloring or toning repairs to blend with the original artifact. Part of this work may also include removing previous inappropriate restorations. As a result, artifacts that are conserved often do not appear “like new.” For the Palmer cassone, Mark Minor first brush-cleaned and vacuumed the entire piece before using solvent to clean and remove tinted wax that had been applied in the past. A special resin was then injected to help strengthen and stabilize the areas damaged by insects. In order to fix the splits in the wood, Minor utilized a combination of basswood cleats and pieces, as well as two types of glues. Both glues used, hide glue and fish glue, are water soluble, making them easily reversible. The conservation treatment also repaired losses to the front molding by utilizing basswood and a pliable epoxy to better match the rest of the intricate designs. Finally, he reattached and stabilized the foot. As a final step, Mark waxed the entire trunk with a mix of Carnauba wax and beeswax before buffing it. Because this work took over twenty hours, the trunk was brought to Mark’s studio in Howard, Colorado. Don’t miss! SEPT. 14 EXHIBIT NOW OPEN SEPT. 21 LECTURE SERIES The conservation treatment performed on the trunk allows it to look its best for exhibition, but more importantly, it ensures the cassone will be better preserved for years to come. We greatly appreciate the work of Mark Minor for his excellent treatment of this important Palmer artifact, and thank the Jackson Family Trust for generously providing funds for the conservation treatment. MUSELETTER SEPTEMBER 2019| PG 3
UPCOMING EVENTS NOW OPEN: EVIDENCE: FINDING THE FACTS ABOUT GENERAL WILLIAM JACKSON PALMER 10:00 am - 5:00 pm | Tue – Sat (regular museum hours) PIKES PEAK REGIONAL HISTORY LECTURE SERIES: Worcestershire and Whiskey: The Archaeology of General Palmer’s Garbage Presented by Matt Mayberry and Anna Cordova Sat., Sept. 21 2:00 – 3:00 pm RSVP required CHILDREN’S HISTORY HOUR: PALMER’S PETS Wed., Sept. 18 & Sat., Sept. 28 10:30 – 11:30 am RSVP required VINTAGE GAME NIGHT 21+only Thurs., Sept. 26 5:30 – 8:30 pm Reminisce by playing beloved games dating from the 1800s to the 1980s. Admission: $10 ONLINE $15 (at the door) PIKES PEAK REGIONAL HISTORY LECTURE SERIES Creative Placemaking: 20 Years of Art on the Streets Presented by Claire Swinford, Downtown Partnership Sat., Oct. 5 2:00 – 3:00 pm RSVP required ONGOING: ENJOY FOOD TRUCK TUESDAYS! Every Tues. through Oct. 29 11:00 am – 1:30 pm COLORADO FARM & ART MARKET Every Wed. through Oct. 9 3:00 – 7:30 pm RSVP for events at: www.cspm.org/rsvp-for-an-event or Call 719-385-5990 Museum Hours: Tuesday – Saturday | 10:00 am – 5:00 pm MUSELETTER SEPTEMBER 2019| PG 4
UPCOMING EVENTS MUSEUM STORE The gift shop at CSPM has a variety of items related to the new Palmer exhibit including books on General Palmer and his family, a DVD, and postcards. All proceeds from the Museum Store support the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum. MUSELETTER SEPTEMBER 2019| PG 5
DID YOU KNOW? National Endowment for the Humanities awards the CSPM by Caitlin Sharpe, CSPM Registrar The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) awarded the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum with a Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections matching grant of $290,000 towards a $600,875 project to install an HVAC system at the museum’s off-site storage facility. The Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections is an NEH grant program that helps cultural institutions preserve collections by supporting efforts to “mitigate deterioration, prolong the useful life of collections, and support institutional resilience” (National Endowment of Humanities). As this is a federally funded, it is extremely competitive with museums all across the United States applying. This year, the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum was one of 18 recipients to be awarded in this particular category, totaling $2.7 million grant requests. The museum’s 14,000 square foot off-site facility houses archival materials, compact textile racks, and larger collection items, such as furniture, machinery, architectural elements, archeological collections, natural history specimens, mining, railroad, agricultural and industrial equipment. Without an HVAC system, these artifacts can be harmed by the extreme environmental conditions (i.e. too dry or too humid) or rapid changes in conditions. While staff regularly monitor the building’s conditions, the lack of an HVAC system creates challenges for the artifacts and archival materials stored there. The NEH grant will support the installation of an energy efficient HVAC system with digital central controls and low velocity fans. This improvement will allow staff to maintain optimal environmental conditions to better preserve collections now and for future generations. A new HVAC system is the most significant in a series of improvements to the off-site facility that have taken place over the years. In summer 2017, the museum’s Foundation provided funds for a much needed new roof that improved the overall envelope of the building. Over the years, staff have sealed the garage doors and protected shelves with muslin to protect collections from dust. A 2018 grant from Colorado Springs Utilities allowed for the replacement of two garage doors. By the end of 2019, new compact shelving will be installed to house archeological, paleontological, and geological collections. MUSELETTER SEPTEMBER 2019| PG 6
With the help of the NEH grant, the Collections staff will begin the real work to prepare the off-site for the future installation of the HVAC. To accomplish this project, staff will verify the inventory of all materials at the off-site facility to prepare for the upcoming move. Archival materials will be relocated to the museum while smaller artifacts will be boxed up and organized. Because the facility is divided into two parts, staff can utilize one space while the other section’s HVAC is installed. Though this may sound simple, it will take many hours of staff time to ensure that thousands of artifacts of all sizes and hundreds of boxes are safely moved. We are delighted to share that it was a wonderful success! While gifts and pledges are still coming in, our tally was $71,904 cash in hand, sponsorships and pledges. In addition to welcoming new donors, we also welcomed ten new Clock Tower Society members. Thanks goes out to everyone that participated and help ensure that the CSPM is building a lasting connection to the Pikes Peak Region by preserving and sharing our cultural history! MUSELETTER SEPTEMBER 2019| PG 7
VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH JESSICA LEACH, Junior Docent Each summer the CSPM selects 30 middle and high school students to volunteer as Junior Docents. These bright and enthusiastic young people support our educational programming and interpret regional history for visitors. Jessica Leach is in her third summer with the museum, and set a new record clocking in over 96 volunteer hours this June and July alone! Meg Poole, the museum’s Program Coordinator, has the privilege of supervising the Junior Docents along with Makaela Worden, CSPM Education Assistant. “We have seen so much growth in Jessica over the years. She has become a leader in the program, and never hesitates to support her fellow volunteers and make new students feel welcome. She is a natural presenter and educator, and we are fortunate to have her as part of the team!” Meg shared. The museum was so impressed with Jessica that she was invited to provide the opening remarks at the annual Gift of History Breakfast in August. We asked Jessica why she enjoys volunteering and she shared, “I volunteer for the museum to feed my inner history nerd, make some new friends and I love to learn and help others learn as well.” She also reflected on some of her favorite memories in her time with the museum, “One of my favorite memories is the first time I gave a tour. I was so nervous to actually give a tour and I remember feeling amazing by the end and then coming away from that and reflecting and going over what I did that was good and what I could improve for the next time.” Her favorite place to take visitors on her tours is the Helen Hunt Jackson house, “she has such a unique story that is so different from anything I’ve ever heard about. She suffered so much loss and Jessica in Division 1 Courtroom Jessica with Mom, Lisa at Gift of History Breakfast she was able to keep going and she found a cause and she stuck to it until she died.” When not spending time at CSPM, Jessica leads a busy life as a teenager, “My life outside of the museum is AP and honors classes at school, reading, playing the violin, writing, and helping my mom out with her classroom.” Jessica also enjoys volunteering for Link Crew and Peer Mediators, and is learning about the biomedical field after three years with the PLTW Biomedical course. She shared that she is always “counting down the days until I get to go to the museum again because CSPM is such a big part of my life.” Jessica with group visit in Story of Us exhibit Thank you for your dedicated service, Jessica! MUSELETTER SEPTEMBER 2019| PG 8
HAPPENINGS Gift of History Breakfast August 21, 2019 Top photo left: Board Member Laurel Prud’homme and GOH guests. Top right: Leah Davis Witherow shares about the upcoming exhibit, Evidence Right photo: Board Member Chrys Fotenos and GOH guests. Thank you! Archaeology in the Pikes Peak Region presented by: Anna Cordova, Lead Archaeologist, City of Colorado Springs Marshall Sprague Lecture August 10, 2019 Marshall Sprague Lecture presented by: Katherine Scott Sturdevant, Pikes Peak Community College, Senior History Professor Follow CSPM on social media! MUSELETTER AUGUST 2019| PG 9
1 Publizr