While Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc over much of the East Coast the past few days, the Northern Neck of Virginia seems to have thankfully dodged a big bullet. I am glad to report that the old girl is still standing and no worse for the soaking.
Other than a flooded lane and some wet carpet in the Visitor’s Center, everything is shored up and just how we left it. That’s pretty good news for a mostly collapsed house.
I hope the rest of you fared as well.
The Menokin Foundation is very fortunate to have an Advisory Council of professionals in the fields of architecture, engineering, historic conservation, museum programs and cultural landscape which has been established to assist in the decision making process of the Glass Concept.
Staff members sat down with some of these advisors over dinner last fall and interviewed them about why they love Menokin, and why they have dedicated so much time to this project.
The result is this video which attempts to encapsulate the spark of imagination, inspiration and innovation that is Menokin.
We hope you will enjoy and share the video.
The Virginia Historical Society has posted a video of the recent banner lecture, Planter Oligarchy on Virginia’s Northern Neck, which was co-sponsored by Menokin. The video features a fabulous introduction by Menokin’s own, Sarah Dillard Pope, Executive Director of the Menokin Foundation.
Also includes a shout out to Tayloe Negus and Tayloe Emery, both Hampden-Sydney alums, who help established the relationship between Dr. Coombs and Menokin.
Enjoy!
In late September, three women from the National Trust for Historic Preservation paid a visit to Menokin.
Organized by Menokin’s old friend, Katherine Malone-France, formerly of Oak Grove Restoration and currently the Director of Outreach, Education & Support, Historic Sites Department of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the visit included the following members of the Trust’s technical support team:
They were all smart, energized and informed and I was so impressed with the 
combined knowledge and enthusiasm of the group. It was exciting to see young women crawling around old buildings and knowing as much about construction and engineering as any man! What great role models for that next generation of enthusiasts that we hope to attract.
I wrote to them after their visit and asked them reflect on their visit: why they came, what their expectations were, what their experiences here were, and what they left with.
In true Emily Post fashion, I got the following reply, complete with images, which I now share with you. We hope that you can take this spark of enthusiasm about The Menokin Project and fan it into a flame for yourselves and your friends and colleagues.
In their own words…
Rebecca Buntrock
“Before coming to Menokin, I had looked through the renderings for the proposed glass-house structure around the existing ruin. As a preservation engineer, I was very intrigued by this concept but until I saw the site I didn’t fully grasp its potential, which soon became clear.
To me, the structure is much more about architecture, exploration, and the experience of seeing a building deconstructed, than it is about the history of Francis Lightfoot Lee. I loved the “tree-house” feel of the wood stairs snaking
through what’s left of the building, and the chance to physically see and touch the structure. It’s also a great story regarding how documentation of the building saved part of its history.
If the Machado-Silvetti design is realized, it will serve as the ultimate case-study in architectural innovation, beyond just breaking the mold of the traditional historic house museum. It literally has every component of design challenge, from stabilization of the ruins, to working within an existing building and the construction of a new glass shell. This should be presented at conferences and written about in technical journals, to gain publicity within the industry. It will likely become a “pilgrimage site” for design professionals with the big names on the design team, in particular Eckersley O’Callaghan as the glass consultants.
But the site is also appealing to a much larger audience – people are always very interested in seeing the building components, even if they aren’t architects or engineers. This often seems to be most popular part of many historic sites. There are presently brick and stucco construction mock-ups and classes held in one of the warehouses. It would be great to include the building trades, perhaps in the form of a field school, as part of the site’s development. Katherine and I also discussed possibly starting small, with a mock-up of the proposed curtain wall and steel armature, so people could see the proposed system, and the design team could begin to analyze how it’s going to work. Perhaps a curtain wall manufacturer with a proprietary system would be willing to donate money or materials for this effort.
I left the site thinking about my architecturally-inclined friends that would enjoy seeing the site, and considering when I’d come back. I look forward to seeing where the future leads for this site. I did a blog post on it: http://preservationframeofmind.wordpress.com/2012/09/25/menokin/“
Helena Treeck
“Before my visit to Menokin I had familiarized myself with the project through the website and the presentation that includes ideas and renderings of what 
Menokin will look like after its transformation. However, when I arrived at the site I was expecting to see 2 houses: the one I had seen in the renderings and pictures and one that is used in the logo. I learned soon that there was only one house: The charming ruins from the spectacular renderings. Another reason I came to Menokin was that I had been told that it daringly challenges the traditional house museum form that we are so used to when visiting plantation house museums. This prospect was quite intriguing to me as I am currently working on a project for which I have looked at different plantation museums across the American South.
Menokin is indeed a breath of fresh air. The staff, Sarah and Leslie, are passionate about their idea of preserving the ruin and juxtaposing it with extremely modern architecture. A concept that presents itself to a multitude of ways to interpret this site: The open steel and glass structure that will preserve the ruin will allow the visitor to see preservation in action, take a look right at the guts of the house and be inside and outside at the same time. The experience of being inside this former “big house” can be recreated while conserving the innate charm of its ruin.
As a visitor it is exciting to see the structure of the place and be wandering through it on a little adventure. The building concept is nothing short of brilliant. Little sections that are covered in Plexiglas on one side of the building already give a great idea of what the finished product might look like. The finished location could be used for lectures on history, architecture, engineering, or it could hosts weddings, wine tastings, and classical concert. But, the vision of this dynamic staff duo does not stop at the big house.
An education nature path leading down to Rappahannock Creek is already equipped with signs explaining the different plants growing on the property. Their idea is to reanimate the Creek which, once upon a time, was the local highway. Sarah and Leslie envision a pier to walk into the lake, a canoe rental by the lake, and have a general concept to integrate the local community. 
Maybe one day guests will arrive at Menokin the old way, from the Creek site on a little boat.
One might at first think that Menokin is just another ruin, but Sarah’s and Leslie’s energy and enthusiasm can activate anybody’s imagination to see the vast potential of Menokin and its whole grounds.
The popular Banner Lecture Series offered at the Virginia Historical Society in Richmond, VA will host two guest speakers in October, both co-sponsored by The Menokin Foundation.
These programs will be held at the VHS, which is located at 428 North Boulevard in Richmond, VA.
The first takes place on Thursday, October 4, 2012 at noon, and features Dr. John C. Coombs, a professor at Hampden-Sydney College, discussing Planter Oligarchy on Virginia’s Northern Neck.
Unlocking Menokin’s Secrets: Archaeological and Landscape Research at a Northern Neck Plantation takes place on Thursday, October 25, 2012 at noon, and will be presented by David Brown and Thane Harpole of DATA Investigations.
One of the great houses to survive from colonial Virginia, Menokin was the result of a unique collaboration between John Tayloe II of Mount Airy and Francis Lightfoot Lee, the husband of his daughter Rebecca. Tayloe gave Lee a life interest in 1,000 acres of his vast Richmond County estate and, as a wedding present, built the plantation house and surrounding structures.
Though scant written records remain, other clues offer insight into this adaptation of European design to the environment of eastern Virginia. David Brown with DATA Investigations will discuss recent archaeological and landscape research conducted at the site.
Reservations are not required for either lecture. Admission is $6/adults, $5/seniors, $4/children and students, free/members (please present card) and to Richmond Times-Dispatch readers with a Press Pass coupon. Parking is free. For more information visit: www.vahistorical.org/news/lectures_banner.htm.
The Menokin Foundation is pleased to announce that it has received $70,000 in grant money from the NPS to initiate planning and design for two public access points on Cat Point Creek at Menokin.
“We are excited to be able to begin the process of making Cat Point Creek more accessible to the public,” says Sarah Pope, Executive Director at Menokin, “And hope that the research performed during this planning phase will also help us to better understand the intricate story of the Menokin landscape.”
The National Park Service (NPS) Chesapeake Bay Office announced on September 5, 2012 that the NPS is providing financial assistance to 21 partners and 24 projects with a combined financial commitment of $1,363,039. These projects with 21 partners in fiscal year 2012 address education, youth employment and stewardship programs, and public access and trail development in the Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails Network and along the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail and the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail. Each project is leveraged through additional means such as matching funds, in-kind services, and volunteer hours.
In collaboration with many partners, the National Park Service works to expand public access to the Chesapeake Bay and tributary rivers, build visitor experiences along two national historic trails, develop teacher resources in line with state standards, and expand service and employment opportunities for youth. “Through partner engagement and participation, each of these projects has a positive impact in local communities,” said NPS Superintendent John Maounis. “Whether teaching the history of these places, introducing young people to possible career paths, or providing a new place to get to the water, these are investments in quality of life.”
The Chesapeake Bay Office of the National Park Service administers the Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails Network of partner sites, and also manages two of the nation’s nineteen national historic trails. Both trails are comprised of land and water routes accessible through partner sites, are in active stages of development, and offer opportunities for educators and students that are both virtual and place-based. Educational programming, training in stewardship and outdoor recreation skills, and youth employment opportunities all contribute to trail development.
Trail development and youth engagement projects also advance public access goals set through the Strategy for Protecting and Restoring the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, the federal response to President Obama’s Executive Order 13508. The strategy and subsequent draft public access plan call for the addition of 300 new sites where citizens can have a waterside experience, whether hiking, paddling, enjoying a picnic, or fishing.
Project summaries can be accessed through http://www.baygateways.net/viewrelease.cfm?press_release_id=297
Upon receiving the news of Mr. Boucher’s passing on September 2, 2012, I dug into the Menokin Photo archive this morning to look for the images that I knew he had taken here as part of his work with HABS (Historic American Building Survey). Wouldn’t it be nice, I thought, to share these photographs with the world as a way of paying tribute to the wonderful career of Jack Boucher?
Enjoy!
Read his obituary on our facebook page.
Commentator Thea Marshall recently learned about a famous architect who’ll be putting back together again a famous pile of rubble.
Of course, the famous architect is Jorge Silvetti – of Machado and Silvetti Associates – and the famous pile of rubble is Menokin, a National Historic Landmark and the Commonwealth’s largest and most historic jigsaw puzzle.
This essay, as comfortable to listen to as a favorite tune, is chock full of information about Menokin – the place, the people who lived here, and what the future holds for this historic treasure.
http://ideastations.org/radio/archive/2012-07-25-menokin-redux
Thea Marshall is the author of “Neck Tales: Stories from Virginia’s Northern Neck,” published in June, 2009. Along with her professional writing assignments, she is a broadcaster, actor, and producer, with life long experience in all forms of communication – from print to theater to radio and television. She writes and broadcasts original commentaries on and about the people, places, history, culture and current issues relating to the Northern Neck for WCVE Public Radio (heard on both WCVE in Richmond and WCNV for the Northern Neck).
Find out how Menokin is rattling the chains of traditional house museum preservation and conservation.
Don’t forget that the Menokin Photography contest is now underway. Even an overcast day can result in gorgeous pictures. These were all taken right here at the Visitor’s Center.
