It has taken longer to restore it than it did to build it, but the work to repair the 1812 powder house, located off the northwest corner of the Common, is finally complete.
The building was damaged in fall 2013 when a truck rolled into it from the parking lot in front of the fire station. Because of the lengthy wait for the insurance claim to be settled, workers’ busy schedules, and snow that wouldn’t stop, the rebuilding process has taken the better part of two years.
Last week, David Lewis, an independent carpenter hired by Robert Adam, the Historical Commission’s volunteer clerk of the works, put the finishing touches on the new door. Lewis said the old door had not been worth saving and that the new one is a more accurate reproduction than the previous replacement door. Lewis painted a cornice around the building, and the deep rust color unites the brick walls with the roof.
A recent post on the Historical Commission’s website says that the commission has two additional items it would like to see done before it will consider the powder house really complete. One is to put up a barrier behind the building to ensure that a similar accident never happens in the future. Another is to put in a floor, since the original one has long since deteriorated.
The Garden Club of Harvard has a long history of beautification efforts on the grounds around the powder house. Despite clearing and planting attempts over the years, nature always reclaimed the land, and the club abandoned the project. Now, with a joint request from the Garden Club and the Historical Commission, the DPW is clearing and mulching the area around the powder house.
