Author: PHW

The concern over the future for downtown commercial districts was not limited to Winchester. The National Trust for Historic Preservation saw and studied this need to stabilize downtowns against unprecedented pressures. The most common factor cited by the National Trust for the decline of downtowns across the country included the rise of new commercial construction in the form of strip malls. The Trust cites an increase in retail space from 4 square feet to 38 square feet per capita between 1960 and 2000, an increase which could not be supported by consumer spending. Instead of expanding the number of commercial enterprises, businesses were more likely to migrate to these newly constructed spaces.

Other factors the Trust cited that may not be quite so obvious at first glance stemmed from changes in land use. Zoning regulations fundamentally changed the way towns grew. In the past, small businesses and homes could coexist side by side, with neighborhood stores serving a few blocks as the need arose. Even larger businesses could be just a short walk from residences, or cause a new residential neighborhood to spring up around it to provide housing for the workers. With zoning regulations more firmly separating the notion of residential and commercial districts, main streets with their “mixed use” character were out of date. In general, upper story living spaces were erased from downtowns.

The last factor is the “car culture” that rose in the wake of increased American prosperity, fueled by the interstate highway systems making travel by car faster and more efficient. Downtowns were ill-equipped to adapt to cars, leading to unprecedented numbers of tear downs for parking lots and gas stations. Highways often bypassed towns completely, isolating the older commercial districts and leading to the boom of commercial construction along these new travel corridors.

The pedestrian mall changes to Winchester in the 1970s was an early way the town tried to adapt to the changing retail market. By 1981, it was clear this was an insufficient band aid to a deeper, endemic problem. The area’s first major competition to the downtown was looming as the Apple Blossom Mall project was becoming a reality — and taking key stores out of downtown. Something had to happen to prevent a complete collapse of the downtown.

PHW became aware of the test programs spearheaded by the National Trust taking place in select cities in the late 1970s. When the test program was preparing to launch in Virginia, PHW collaborated with the City in the attempt to bring the Main Street Program to Winchester. We succeeded. In 1985, National Trust experts descended upon Winchester to help set up what we know of today as the Old Town Development Board. But even before the program launched, Winchester and PHW were experimenting to keep activity in Old Town, which we will cover in more detail in the coming weeks.

Learn more about the National Main Street Center and the Four Point Approach to preserving downtowns at their website, www.preservationnation.org/main-street/

By 1980, the downtown mall was facing a crisis as more key stores were lured away from Loudoun Street for strip malls on the fringes of town. Downtown entertainment and cultural activities were few and far between. Serious, comprehensive revitalization plans and a vision for the mall’s future were necessary in order to prevent a complete catastrophe.(1) (2) PHW was prepared to help the budding downtown revitalization efforts.(3) One way to accomplish that in a way that meshed well with PHW’s mission was through revisiting the architectural walking tour.

PHW had first made a foray into the world of self-guided architectural walking tours as a promotion of Winchester and its architecture in the 1970s, culminating in 1976 with a tour booklet written by Katie Rockwood and sponsored by several local banks. The tour itself had been praised highly by the National Trust for historic preservation in 1976 as being informative and easy to understand. The best part in the eyes of the National Trust consultant was the architectural style guide and glossary with its simple but informative illustrations and text. PHW updated the tour text, revised some photographs, reached out to more downtown businesses as sponsors, and reprinted the booklet in 1981. Although now out of print and the tour text and photos are once again out of date, the highly praised introductory text, architectural style guide, and glossary have been digitized and added to PHW’s growing digital library as a supplement to the more current walking tours. View the 1976 architectural walking tour introduction and glossary.

In addition to the self-guided format of the booklet, PHW volunteers also led guided walking tours in the fall of 1984 and 1985 based on Katie Rockwood’s text.(4) Tours were also adapted for elementary age students and parents through Winchester Public Schools, reportedly drawing in 100 participants for one iteration. (5) PHW continues to stay involved with the walking tour scene, have helped produce the 250 Years of History and Architecture and Civil War self-guided and guided tours in the 1990s, and continues to host one-time tour events like the Italianate guided tour and the recent church tour.

Just producing a walking tour by itself is no guarantee of getting more people to come downtown or boost tourism, but walking tours, particularly when combined with pithy historical facts, is one way to start generating “buzz” about buildings that might otherwise be overlooked.

Have you been on a walking tour of Winchester lately? Check out the selection of guided and self-guided tours available at the Visitors Center. Is there a tour idea you’d like to see produced in the future? Let us know!

From Loudoun Street, circa 1980

In 1979, founding PHW member and historian Ben Belchic passed away and left a bequest to PHW.(1) Knowing his interest in documentation of Winchester’s history, and his propensity to push others to do that research, the bequest was earmarked for a special project for the Revolving Fund. The opportunity to use that bequest came when a significant log duplex on South Loudoun Street was proposed for demolition as a parking lot.

The Jennings Revolving Fund acquired the property at 422-424 South Loudoun Street to prevent its loss. It was apparent this property was a bit different from others that had passed through the fund. Although incredibly dilapidated after its use as apartments, the house held an architectural secret in its framing.

The older building at 424 S. Loudoun St., constructed by Godfrey Miller circa 1768-1777 (with remains of a smaller stone building circa 1750 incorporated into the log expansion) displayed an unusual construction technique for Winchester. The building was constructed with vertical corner post and plank, or post-and-plank log construction, a technique commonly associated with German settlers yet rarely observed in this area. Other buildings in Winchester may have this construction technique, though this is the only example documented in town. It is a feature impossible to observe from an exterior architectural survey because it lies solely within the bones of the house. In addition, tradition states that logs from Fort Loudoun were repurposed in the construction of this (and other) homes around town.

Because of this unique construction technique and the fortuitous bequest from Ben Belchic, Douglass Reed was hired to lend his expertise in log construction to the documentation of the Godfrey Miller House. A short section was included on the younger (circa 1800) half of the duplex, the Peter Miller House at 422 S. Loudoun St., as well. This report is now available online to researchers: Godfrey and Peter Miller House Report.

The Peter Miller House was purchased from the Revolving Fund by John G. Lewis.(2) That name may be very familiar to those who have been following along with the Friday posts. As an architectural historian, John Lewis documented the work he did and the history of his side of the house. This report is now also available to researchers online: Peter Miller House Report.

These two homes have come a long way since their time as apartments in the mid-twentieth century. To see more of the evolution of the Godfrey and Peter Miller House, visit the Revolving Fund Flickr album.

As we saw last week, the future of the Old John Kerr School remained in limbo after bids from PHW and Melco were rejected by the City Council. The disposition of the Old John Kerr building became perhaps the most troubling stumbling block to the preservation of the building. Everyone seemed to agree that the building should be saved, was of vital importance to our history, and the best use of the site was not as a parking lot. The only way to enact the preservation was for the building to be sold, and yet bids or plans after six years had swayed the City to part with the building. PHW continued to champion for Old John Kerr, hoping to find another outside entity that could purchase and rehabilitate the old school.

In 1981, a Boston developer was given the green light to redevelop the school into apartments, but again, the deal fell through when federal assistance did not materialize.(1) (2) It was not until 1982 that Shenandoah University (then Shenandoah College and Conservatory of Music) proposed to use the building for nursing and music branch, as well as a community arts center. Despite all the previous setbacks with the various offers on the building, optimism about this deal was high. SU President Jim Davis had done his homework, approached the right people well in advance, and made this offer as painless – and as tempting – to the City as possible.(3) (4)

Like the Conrad House, the affection held for this building brought forth an outpouring of support from the community – this time financial in nature. PHW was thrilled by the prospect of the college tackling the renovation and donated $10,000 to the project in 1982.(5) (6) (7) To help meet the pledge amount, PHW produced “Save John Kerr – It’s Elementary” bumper stickers for every $10 donation. Many other entities also contributed to the project, ensuring the Old John Kerr would not run out of resources before the building could be polished and furnished. In conjunction with the financial support, Winchester Star editorials and retrospectives of the school kept the issue in the limelight as the building approached its centennial year in 1983, reopening at last as another educational center for the community.

Although prospects for the school had looked bleak through much of the 1970s and early 1980s, the persistence and commitment of Winchester’s citizens to retaining their beloved school paid off. Shenandoah University continues to operate the building as the Shenandoah Conservatory Arts Academy, offering children instruction in dance, music, theater, art, and fitness, continuing the legacy of the philanthropist John Kerr and his vision for education the children of Winchester.

One preservation issue had percolated quietly in the background of the 1970s and into the 1980s – the fate of the vacant old John Kerr School building at the corner of Cameron and Cork Streets. In 1974, the original John Kerr building closed its doors as a public school for the final time, leaving the building empty for nearly ten years. Speculation about the fate of the building started soon after it closed its doors. The fear was that the beloved old school would be demolished for a parking lot. (1)(2)

The school was Winchester’s first endowed public educational facility. Local philanthropist and cabinetmaker John Kerr left a bequest of $7,000 to the City for the education of “poor white children” in 1870. His will was interpreted in such a way that the funds could be used to erect a public school building. Up to this point, the established public schools, although plentiful, were all rented spaces, often in the local churches or in private residences. With the Kerr bequest, which had subsequently grown to $10,000, and the City’s contribution of $6,000, Winchester’s first public school building was constructed from 1883-1884 in the Romanesque Revival style. The school originally consisted of ten rooms and accommodated about 300 to 500 students.

School enrollment boomed in the early 1900s with over 800 students by 1910, making the original building insufficient. The cornerstone for the addition to accommodate the surge in students was laid in 1908. In 1919, the overcrowding was further reduced by the temporary “chicken coops” located on the future grounds of the Handley High School. Virginia Avenue followed in 1931, and Quarles in 1955.

After serving students in Winchester for over ninety years, the old building was replaced with the new John Kerr Elementary School on Jefferson Street in 1972. It operated for two additional school years serving the the sixth grade during the construction of the Daniel Morgan Middle School before shutting its doors for the last time in 1974. With the school board having no further use for the building, the Council’s Municipal Building Committee recommended in 1975 to demolish Old John Kerr.

Knowing the significance of this building and fearing that a lack of ideas would lead to an untimely and unnecessary demolition for a parking lot, PHW allocated a portion of the grant funds received from the National Trust in 1975 to a feasibility study for the Old John Kerr, led by Arthur Zeigler. Several options for what could go into the building were suggested, including low income housing for the elderly, apartments, a community center, court facilities, or a museum. Although it was not a comprehensive survey by any means, it reaffirmed PHW’s concerns that this large building needed special attention and a specific purpose to be retained. Other ideas sprang up as well. The Winchester Host Lions Club made a separate proposal for shared nonprofit office and service space, while other ideas suggested uses as far ranging as a Bicentennial center, professional offices, nursing home, mental health facility, or Postal Service finance station.(3)

Applications to convert the building to a neighborhood center or a senior center were rejected in 1977. The old school began a slow decline into a vacant eyesore as the school board and the City worked through a potential snag by clearing the title to the three tracts of land comprising the school location and consolidating ownership of the John Kerr property. At the same time, the proposed uses for court facilities for the City and Frederick County fell through, as did the proposal to move postal services into the building. It seemed the time was finally right for the building to go up for sale and find a buyer. (4)

PHW pushed for the City to produce a new appraisal for the building with an eye toward purchasing the structure.(5) Several offers were submitted by the organization, but all were tabled or rejected. To ease some of the deterioration and buy the building more time, PHW volunteers helped secure the building against roof leaks and harsh winter weather and vandalism in 1979.(6) Bids opened again in 1980, and again PHW bid on the property.(7) Despite pessimistic forecasts of a lack of interest, a second bidder, Melco, Inc., also made a proposal for the property. Although both bids and plans were acceptable, both were rejected for undisclosed reasons.(8) (9) Speculation and worry on what would become of the Old John Kerr persisted.

Further information on Winchester’s schools can be found in Garland Quarles’ book, “Winchester, Virginia: Streets, Churches, Schools,” published by the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society.