Friends launch a new, $20,000 capital campaign to raise the funds required to begin to restore the groundfloor 1848 windows, interior shutters and exterior moldings.
Friends of Harmony Hall launched a capital campaign to raise $20,000 to begin critical restoration of the magificent, groundfloor windows. Many of the windows still retain their original glass, which is in perfect condition. The windows also include sets of interior shutters, many of which need repairs. The exterior shutters were removed in the 20th century and exterior molding needs to be replace so that shutters can be reconstructed and mounted to the repaired frames. It is a major restoration task that will require funding beyond the campaign goal. The donations received as a result of this campaign will allow FOHH to pursue matching grant funds, however, which will pave the way for the completion of the full restoration project.
To date, we are 25% of the way to meeting our $20,000 campaign goal. If you would like to make a donation, please call Curator Geoff Welch at 845.712.5220 or contact our Treasurer Stephen Hoefer by E-mail at shoefer@FriendsOfHarmonyHall.org. We look forward to keeping you up-to-date on our efforts and, more importantly, offer our gratitude to those people who have so generously donated to this effort so far. Their names appear above.
The Town of Ramapo is preparing to begin work on a $600,000 plan to restore Harmony Hall's main roof, cupola, front verandah and main entrance doors to their 1848 appearance. Bids were opened by Town officials on June 21st, but the bids either did not comport with the the requirements of the bid or the prices were high enough to require the Town and its architect, Crawford & Sterns, to complete some value engineering.
This project takes advantage of a state "matching" grant program, where the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation & Historical Preservation will contribute half of the total project cost, up to a total of $300,000. After consulting with the OPRHP, the Town of Ramapo will provide temporary repairs to the deteriorating roof to protect the interiors of the house over the winter. At the same time, the request for bids is being redesigned to incorporate the value engineering initiatives. It will be released before the end of 2011 so that restoration work can commence this spring. The Friends of Harmony Hall would like to thank the dedicated staff of the OPRHP for their diligence and support of this vitally important capital improvement project. It will play a critical role in allowing our community to perserve the historic Jacob Sloat mansion, which was listed to the State and National Registers of Historic Places in 2006.
Town of Ramapo completes a key utility survey that will pave the way for new interior restoration projects to begin.
Harmony Hall has been the subject of poorly-devised electrical, plumbing and heating schemes since the mansion left the ownership of the Sloat family in 1908. During the early years of the current century, many vital utility systems within the mansion also began to fail, leaving some areas of the main floor without heat and subject to electrical overloading.
At the suggestion of the Friends of Harmony Hall's Restoration Committee, the Town of Ramapo funded the completion of a utility survey this winter, which was conducted by a professional engineer with expertise in heating and air conditioning, and electrical utility systems. After completing his survey, the engineer presented a final report to the Town outlining existing conditions and providing recommendations for utility upgrades. With the addition of a reliable heating and electrical infrastructure,
After being repainted and then abandoned to the basement of Harmony Hall for more than fifty years, a circa 1900 chandelier that was discovered in 2006. The light fixture, which was probably purchased and installed by Henry Ransom Sloat only years before his death in 1905, has now been expertly restored as a gift to the house by internationally-esteemed conservator Kenneth Linsner. Visitors to the mansion during November and December 2010 received a special opportunity to get a sneak peak at the newly-restored chandelier before it is retired to a more secure location, where it will rest until the Town of Ramapo has upgraded the electrical service and switches that will power the fixture, and until Friends have raised the resources needed to complete repairs to the ceiling plasterwork and medallion in the South Salon. Current plans call for the chandelier to be returned to its original berth after this additional work has been completed. For more information on this restoration project, click here.
After years of revealing the architectural gems that lay hidden behind drywall, build-overs and laminate tiles, Friends of Harmony Hall determined that it was critical to begin restoration work from the floor-up! The magnificent (but soft) pine floors that had been installed and covered with room-size carpets in 1848 had been covered with layers of laminated flooring during the period that the house served as an inn and restaurant, and as an adult care facility. Before work could be completed on damaged walls, it was clear that floorcovering would have to be removed first. This exposed the fragile pine floors to damage from modern foot-traffic. As a result, although it was counter-intuitive to some, it became clear that the restoration of the floors would need to be the subject of the Friends's first major fundraising campaign.
Thanks to the generosity of members, friends and the Town of Ramapo, funding was raised to begin restoration work in early September 2010. That work has now been completed and, as you can see, the results are astounding! To learn more about the restoration of the first-floor exhibit room floors, navigate to the menu tab entitled Floor Restoration Project of click hereto open a new window.
Become part of the Harmony Hall Restoration movement!
For information on how you can help with restoration work that is currently being planned for the mansion's interior, please contact Treasurer and Restoration Committee member Stephen Hoefer at shoefer@friendsofharmonyhall.org or call Curator Geoff Welch at 845.712.5220. All contributions are restricted to restoration work ONLY and include no administrative fees. They are also 100% tax deductible.
Friends of Harmony Hall launched a capital campaign to raise $20,000 to begin critical restoration of the magificent, groundfloor windows. Many of the windows still retain their original glass, which is in perfect condition. The windows also include sets of interior shutters, many of which need repairs. The exterior shutters were removed in the 20th century and exterior molding needs to be replace so that shutters can be reconstructed and mounted to the repaired frames. It is a major restoration task that will require funding beyond the campaign goal. The donations received as a result of this campaign will allow FOHH to pursue matching grant funds, however, which will pave the way for the completion of the full restoration project.
The Town of Ramapo is preparing to begin work on a $600,000 plan to restore Harmony Hall's main roof, cupola, front verandah and main entrance doors to their 1848 appearance. Bids were opened by Town officials on June 21st, but the bids either did not comport with the the requirements of the bid or the prices were high enough to require the Town and its architect, Crawford & Sterns, to complete some value engineering.
After being repainted and then abandoned to the basement of Harmony Hall for more than fifty years, a circa 1900 chandelier that was discovered in 2006. The light fixture, which was probably purchased and installed by Henry Ransom Sloat only years before his death in 1905, has now been expertly restored as a gift to the house by internationally-esteemed conservator Kenneth Linsner. Visitors to the mansion during November and December 2010 received a special opportunity to get a sneak peak at the newly-restored chandelier before it is retired to a more secure location, where it will rest until the Town of Ramapo has upgraded the electrical service and switches that will power the fixture, and until Friends have raised the resources needed to complete repairs to the ceiling plasterwork and medallion in the South Salon. Current plans call for the chandelier to be returned to its original berth after this additional work has been completed. For more information on this restoration project, 
After years of revealing the architectural gems that lay hidden behind drywall, build-overs and laminate tiles, Friends of Harmony Hall determined that it was critical to begin restoration work from the floor-up! The magnificent (but soft) pine floors that had been installed and covered with room-size carpets in 1848 had been covered with layers of laminated flooring during the period that the house served as an inn and restaurant, and as an adult care facility. Before work could be completed on damaged walls, it was clear that floorcovering would have to be removed first. This exposed the fragile pine floors to damage from modern foot-traffic. As a result, although it was counter-intuitive to some, it became clear that the restoration of the floors would need to be the subject of the Friends's first major fundraising campaign.