The preservation is well underway for this wonderful 19th century chapel.
A complete replacement of the failed roof systems was completed in the spring
of 2006. This included stripping of the entire existing roofing system,
overlaying all of the original planking with 3/4" plywood, installation of 8
feet of ice and water shield at the roofs edge and overlaying with a 50 year
architectural shingle. During the re-roofing process a full ridge and soffit
vent system was installed, the chimneys were re-pointed and flashed and
guttering was installed along the front of the steeple to help preserve the
facade and make entering and exiting a more pleasant experience for people
during rain.
One of the double-hung window sashes and outer storm sash were damaged
extensively during a wind-storm in the spring of 2006 . As the outer storm sash was not
historically significant, it was replaced with a comparable sash system. As the
inner sash is original to the building, it was sent to a qualified
professional window restorer for historically accurate repair.
To prevent future storm related damage to the building (as well as that of
neighboring buildings) the large sugar maple on the northeast corner of the
property was removed. A couple of slices of the trunk were retained as a memento
of this stately tree and arrangements are being worked on to do something
significant with boards that may be milled from the large trunk.
Future projects awaiting funding are repairs to the ceiling of the multi-purpose room. Other projects critical to
the preservation of Wheeler Chapel are repairs the supporting joists under
various portions of the floor, repairs to the louver area of the steeple and
stripping and repainting of the clapboard siding system. These are projects that
are crucial to the future of the building and well beyond the current financial
means of the Wheeler Chapel Trust.
Please consider making a donation or presenting
a fund raising idea to the Trust so we can
assure that this local architectural treasure as able to bear witness to the
21st century and beyond.
Below is an excerpt from a 12 page historical assessment completed by Allen
Charles Hill on 12/20/2005. The full assessment can be seen here
WHEELER MEMORIAL CHAPEL, Merrimack NH
Field visit 12-20-05
Met with Patricia Mellor and David Rogers
Exterior
• This is a small vernacular structure oriented east-west, with an applied
square tower on the east
gable end. The building sets back about thirty feet from the street, with a
driveway in front.
• The site is quite small, with no room to expand the building. The south yard
and part of the
west have been paved for parking. The remainder of the west yard and the north
are grassed.
• The tower consists of two stages: A lower shaft that rises above the roof
ridge, surmounted by a
hipped roof, and a narrower belfry story with louvered rectangular openings on
each side,
capped with a steep pyramidal roof, at the top of which is a weathered
sheet-metal finial and
weathervane.
• Belfry louvers appear to be in fair condition, with displaced and missing
slats. Plywood has
been applied behind them to close the opening.
• Siding is clapboards, in unremarkable condition.
• Paint appears superficially unremarkable, but on close inspection is seen to
have failed
extensively by cross-grain cracking.
• Roofing is black asphalt shingles. Shingles are cupped and broken, indicating
a roof that has
outlived its expected lifespan.
• A pair of chimneys protrude from the roof about a third of the way from east
to west. They
appear to have been properly flashed, although the flashing looks old and liable
to leaks.
Mortar joints are deeply eroded; repointing is overdue.
• The basement course is rock-faced granite blocks on the North,east, and south,
and rubble
masonry on the west. On the south side there are two basement windows, one with
its east end
under the west jamb of the first main window, and the other with its west end
under the east
jamb of the central main window.
• A fuel-oil filler is located between the second and third windows. A sillcock
is located under
the first window.
• The north and south walls contain five large double-hung windows each with
six-light sash,
surmounted by classical cornices. They appear unremarkable. Storm sash are
present, as are
shutter hinge pintles and dogs. Blinds are missing throughout.
• Windows are located on the front of the main block either side of the tower.
Two courses of
windows are located on the sides of the tower. On its east front, a two-leaf
paneled door in the
first story is surmounted by a window in the second. Upper-story windows lack
storm sash.
• The front doors do not close and latch, possible due to swelling from water
dripping from the
roof above and splashing on them. A gutter across the bottom of the roof might
help alleviate
this problem.
• In front of the tower is a wooden stoop porch, approached by four risers from
the driveway. A
wheelchair access ramp angles to the northwest and returns to the porch. They
appear relatively
unremarkable.
• The electrical and telephone entrances are located on the north face of the
tower, near the
northeast corner.
• When we visited, there was still snow on the north pitch of the roof, although
the south pitch
was bare. Since the roof is relatively steep, the north pitch does not receive
sun at this time of
year. The presence of snow there several days after the last story strongly
suggests that the attic
is well insulated.
• At the rear of the building, there is a single pressed-steel paneled door in
the first story, located
at the south west corner, and a typical window in the gable. As with other
upper-story
windows, no storm sash is present.
• The doorstoop is approached by a flight of four risers from grade.
• A wooden crawlspace access panel is located in the center of the foundation
wall.
• Paint on the rakes, particularly the south rake, has failed to bare wood in
many places. Above
the entrance door are two black areas that look like serious deterioration. A
drip edge is present
along parts of both rakes.
• Both rakes, by the way, are made of three short pieces, for reasons that are
not immediately
clear.
Interior—Basement
• The building was originally constructed over a shallow crawlspace, which I
did not enter. A
partial basement has been excavated under the southeast quadrant of the
building.
• Basement walls are poured concrete. Joints in the work suggest that this space
may have been
enlarged subsequent to its original creation.
• Structural support in the crawlspace consist of posts, mostly supported on
large stones.
• There has been some floor settlement at the north end of the building, which
probably can be
stabilized by installing additional vertical supports. Since this area does not
involve walls, it
may be possible over a period of months to raise the floor to remove the worst
of the sag.
Consultation with a structural engineer is advised before taking action.
• The first floor has been insulated with glass-fiber batts, many of which are
falling. They need
to be reinstalled.
• Basement ventilation is a summertime issue. I recommend mechanical
dehumidification, even
though it is relatively expensive. Consider seasonal dehumidification of the
crawlspace as well,
probably by forced circulation of air between the crawlspace and the
(dehumidified) basement.
• Constructing a small sump around the existing basement pump would allow
dehumidifiers to
drain continuously.
• Heat is oil-fired forced warm air.
• The building is connected to the municipal sewer and water systems.
Interior—Main story
• The building is divided roughly one-third, two-thirds, with a large space,
used as the worship
space for Faith Episcopal Church, occupying the three western bays. Entering
through the
tower, a passage the width of the tower leads to that space.
• Walls and ceilings are plaster with matched board wainscot throughout. Wood
trim appears
generally to be natural-finished yellow pine. Floors originally were wood
throughout. Much
very nice original cast-brass door hardware survives.
• Window sash appear generally to be in good condition. Pressure on muntin
joints produced
little or no deflection in the sash sampled. I was told that sash are hard to
operate, and that sash
cords are broken. All of this suggests that money would be better spent having a
skilled
mechanic recondition the existing sash than in replacing the windows.
• Interior storm sash might be worth considering to improve energy efficiency.
Permanent sash
probably make more sense than the inexpensive “Saran Wrap” alternative. The
lower half of
any interior storm should be removable for warm-weather ventilation.
• The present partition separating the tower and the passage appears to have
been installed soon
after the second world war; it is clad with gypsum wallboard, and the detail and
finish of its
trim differ subtly from the original work. An arch is visible over the interior
face of this
partition. A hook at its apex suggests an original hanging light fixture.
• Existing lighting consists of two hanging fixtures.
• As originally constructed, the passage was flanked by a single room on either
side, with
entrance doors near the east end of the building. Chimneys, originally for
heating stoves, rise in
the west corners against the central hall.
• The northeast room remains more or less as built, with the addition of a
closet to accommodate
vestments across most of the west wall. The floor is covered with carpet that is
starting to look
tired. Illumination is provided by surface-mounted fluorescent fixtures. This
space is presently
used by the children.
• Part of the ceiling is seriously cracked, with small areas of loose plaster.
This damage does not
appear to be leak-related; there are no readily apparent water stains,
suggesting that the
problem is due to the failure of plaster keys. Removal of the loose areas is
indicated, to be
followed by strapping and installing a new gypsum wallboard ceiling beneath the
original.
• The southeast room has been repeatedly modified, first by the addition of a
door from the
passage at its west end, by conversion into a kitchen, and finally, by the
construction of a
wheelchair-accessible lavatory, accessible from the hall, in its northeast
corner.
• The stair to the attic rises up the north wall of this space, and the stair to
the basement drops
beneath it from the lavatory.
• The present kitchen appears to date from the nineteen forties or early
fifties. The floor is
asphalt tile in fair to good condition. Illumination is provided by
surface-mounted fluorescent
fixtures.
• I understand that it is only used for coffee hour, which suggests that it
might be advantageously
reconfigured to provide more program space for the church.
• Significant water damage from roof leaks is evident. An area of the ceiling
plaster about four
feet by six has fallen or been removed, and cracks are apparent.
• Repairs can be made by strapping over the existing plaster and installing a
new gypsum board
ceiling beneath the old work.
• In the lavatory, a stepstool for kids blocks wheelchair access to the
washbasin, and a piece of
furniture blocks access to the water closet, compromising its accessibility. The
space otherwise
appears to be unremarkable.
• The west room is plain, without cornices or ceiling ornamentation. A low
platform extends
across the west end. The floor is carpeted; the material is starting to show its
age.
• There are three pairs of double doors in the east wall, leading to the passage
and the two
flanking spaces.
• Illumination is a combination of six six-lamp “candle” chandeliers and down
lights across the
west platform.
• The floor is somewhat limber, particularly in the area west of the principal
transverse structural
member between the center and north windows; I could feel people walking. This
condition
requires attention by a structural engineer for diagnosis and specific
intervention.
• Water stains in the ceiling by the south chimney suggest a flashing failure.
• This space was repainted within the past four or five years, and appears
relatively
unremarkable. Hairline cracks in the wall plaster do not appear to be a cause
for concern.
Interior—Attic
• The walls of the stair to the attic are lathed, but appear never to have been
plastered.
• In the attic, the first bay and part of the second are filled with stored
material.
• The attic opens to the tower its full width. The tower was framed after the
main house had been
erected and sheathed; the west tower posts are laid over the exterior sheathing
of the building
proper.
• Sash in the tower windows are not in as good condition as those in the main
story, but are not
in crisis by any means—probably good to fair condition. Storm sash are absent;
since this area
is outside the heated envelope, the only reason for providing them would be to
protect the
primary sash.
• Squirrels have been a problem in the attic. One of the tower windows is left
slightly open in
hopes that any invaders would find their way out before they did further damage
by attempting
to chew their way out through the sash.
• The roof structure consists of five bays framed with queenpost trusses
supporting large
intermediate purlins on which the rafters rest. Windbraces rise from the truss
chords to the
purlins. Rafters butt at the ridge; there is no ridge beam.
• All the timber is sawn, although the larger members are connected with pinned
mortise-andtenon
joints.
• Sheathing boards appear somewhat widely spaced, suggesting that the first roof
was wood
shingles. Asphalt shingles are visible through the spaces between boards.
• Some rafters have been sistered on both sides above the purlins (in the second
bay from the
rear and in the center bay, where most of the rafters have been sistered).
• The attic floor joists are set about two feet on center. The spaces between
them have been filled
with cellulose insulation.
• Two chimneys rise through this space. Both have been pargeted, and both show
signs of water
stains. The south chimney is active. The north stack is not, and the question
has been raised
about taking it down below the roof.
• I see no problem with that approach—take the chimney down to a couple of feet
above the
floor and screen its top with 1/2" mesh hardware cloth to prevent things from
falling into it,
while providing ventilation to minimize internal condensation, and further
deterioration.
• The upper sash of the north window is open about an inch; otherwise this
window appears
unremarkable.
• The attic appears relatively unremarkable.
• I did not enter the belfry.
Miscellaneous
• The church has a serious problem with space, both for storage and program. The
small size of
the lot precludes physical expansion.
• Mice and squirrels are an ongoing problem. I didn’t see significant evidence
of the problem,
but that is not meaningful. A pest control firm comes regularly.
• All in all, a nice turn-of-the century building that contains much original
work. Definitely get it
on the State Register as soon as possible.
