Annual Membership Perks

Posted on October 18, 2009 by in FDR Suite

A rare survivor: the wooden pull chain toilet in the FDR Suite. The bathroom requires a lion-share of repairs: decades of water damage have weakened the surrounding plaster.

A rare survivor: the wooden pull chain toilet in the FDR Suite. The bathroom requires the lion-share of structural repairs: decades of water damage have weakened the surrounding plaster, necessitating a complete renovation to preserve the historic fixtures.

We’re making a major, two-pronged fund-raising drive this month: first, we’re knee-deep in the process of applying for corporate and foundation grants for the Suite, and we’ve had some traction: a $50,000 pledge which I’m hoping to be able to announce publicly sometime later this month. This comes on top of generous donations by Wolf-Gordon, Inc. to recreate and provide historically accurate wallpaper for the suite free of charge; and pro bono legal services to set up Foundation’s tax free status by our friends at Ropes and Gray. Together these two donations come to many tens of thousands of dollars, and we are extremely grateful. Shawmut Construction, in the person of their chief preservationist Carl Jay, has also been extremely generous with architectural and construction advice.

All of this leads to the second part of the equation: our supporters (read: you). I would like to encourage you to help out by becoming annual members of the Restoration. Even with the pledges I just listed, we still have over $200,000 to raise in order to fully fund the Restoration and our planned scholarship efforts. In order to encourage participation, we’ve added a series of incentives to our various membership levels:

Member (all dues annual)
$75
Supporter
$250
Donor
$500
Trustee
$1000
Angel
$5000

Members receive individual notices and invitations to private FDR events; 10% discount on all events; special members-only email notifications about all FDR Suite news and progress.

Supporters receive the above, plus 2 free tickets to the lecture portion of the Annual FDR Memorial Lecture & Gala Dinner; preferred seating at all FDR events.

Donors recieve the above, plus two free tickets to the gala dinner portion of the event.

Trustees receive the above, plus one free night (a $200 value) per membership year in the restored FDR Suite (subject to availability, and proof of Harvard affiliation; or by special permission of the Adams House Office or Masters).

Angels receive the above, plus 4 additional nights per membership year.

At the moment, only 5% of you are active financial supporters. Please help to the extent you’re able! To become a member, click here to print out a simple mail-in form. Also, if you’re aware of a private foundation or funding source interested in protecting our cultural heritage, please let me know and we’ll be sure to knock on their door. And for those of you who’ve already given, many thanks!

(IRS Notice: tickets, stays etc. claimed as a benefit of membership valued at more than $75 are considered by the IRS to be quid pro quo donations, and reduce the charitable deduction you may claim on your returns by the value of goods and services received. Values of tickets for events are published in the website; for tax purposes, stays in the Suite are valued at $150/night. For more information, please see this IRS publication.)

Piecing Together FDR’s Rooms, Literally

Posted on September 12, 2009 by in FDR Suite

It all started so simply. Last fall while photographing the FDR Suite, I noticed some curious bits of something dangling behind the large radiator in the main study. What could they be? Those infamous Harvard dust motes again? Ah no! Historical clues, perhaps? The mind raced…. in vain. Most turned out to be prosaic modern paint chips; then however several little vermilion bits turned up…  Wallpaper!

paperfragment

Intrigued, I collected the fragments for further study. But from when did they date, and what, if any pattern did they form? Working with Kari Pei, Director of Design at Wolf-Gordon, Inc., a skilled Adamsite who materialized as if by godsend at our last FDR Memorial Dinner with an offer to help reproduce period wall paper (mirabile dictu!) we began to try to piece together the puzzle. It wasn’t easy. The break came when I found a tiny strip still in situ behind the main radiator, and was able to photograph it. As you can see below, it’s clearly sitting on the base plaster, which means that if it isn’t the original paper for the Suite, then it’s very early, because subsequent layers were not removed, but simply  painted over. This fragment also gave us the vertical orientation for the design.

new fragment

From here, it was just a matter of playing with the pieces on the computer until something fit together. It sounds simple, but the process is long and tedious, and took many, many hours.

A final design eventually emerged from the bits: to give you some idea of the scale, the circles are only 1/4″.

wallpaper final reconstruction

And from that, thanks to the artistry of Kari Pei, the past re-emerges in amazing approximation. From the dust and grime of a few wind tossed fragments, here’s the reconstructed paper. (The scales of these two images don’t quite match, but you get the general idea.)

FDRribbonwall

Here’s the pattern as it will repeat across the walls of the study.

FDR 9 Harvard700

Not exactly a pattern for shrinking violets, but extremely typical of the time. The effect, especially when teamed with rich draperies and all the bric-a brac of Victorian life, will be quite spectacular.

Bravo to all who have helped on this quest! Again, our most heartfelt thanks to Kari Pei and Wolf-Gordon, who have made such a tremendous donation to the project, as well as Merle Bicknell, Assistant Dean of the Department of Physical Resources at Harvard, who worked wonders to make sure this wonderful gift would grace the walls of the Suite this fall.