Carriage House Restoration
Phase III of the MacFarland - Hubbard House Restoration: A Project in Three Phases by the West Virginia Humanities Council

Introduction

In October 2002, the West Virginia Humanities Council began phase three of the MacFarland-Hubbard House preservation with the renovation and adaptive reuse of the "carriage house" at the back of the property. Plans called for renovating the first floor of the 1920's structure for use as a conference/lecture room and exhibit space. This area represents the single largest programming space on the property. The second floor has been adapted for a state-of-the- art electronic publishing center, whose first project will be the on-line version of the West Virginia Encyclopedia.

Renovation of the carriage house has accomplished two goals: to complete restoration of all structures on the historic property and to provide additional space for programming consistent with the Humanities Council's mission.

The Structure and Renovation

Built on the site of an earlier stable/carriage house, the structure was constructed for use as an automobile garage with living quarters on the second floor. The built-in cabinetry in the apartment's galley kitchen matched that in the butler's pantry off the kitchen in the main house, so it is estimated that the two spaces were built at the same time, probably during the major renovation commissioned by the Crowley family in 1923.

As was the case with the historic house, the carriage house is structurally sound. Exterior renovation included replacing any bad wood on the roof, refelting, and replacing the tile; replacing rotted wood in sofits and eaves; replacing gutters and down spouts; correcting drainage around the building; and painting the wood and brick exterior. The folding wooden garage doors were replaced with doors that appear identical to the old ones, thereby maintaining the look of a carriage house, but which opens only in the center for ease of entrance and exit and for heating and cooling efficiency.

The Need

Since its opening, the MacFarland-Hubbard House has served as a site for many Humanities Council programs conducted in Charleston. The renovated first floor of the carriage house provides the Council's only large, unobstructed conference room, estimated to be at least one-quarter larger than the board room in the house where the Little Lecture Series is currently held.

The second floor provides additional offices needed for the Council's proposed electronic publishing center. They will house staff and equipment to maintain the on-line version of the West Virginia Encyclopedia. Once the print version of the encyclopedia is published, the Humanities Council plans to launch the on-line version, making the encyclopedia content, with the on-going revisions necessary to keep it current, available to students and researchers via the Internet. This function will help to fulfill the Council's mission to provide access to humanities education statewide.

Since the renovation was completed in early 2003, the Carriage House has served as an excellent meeting space.