Grant will keep Geneva relic shipshape
Geneva's replica Viking ship got good news Tuesday night: American Express is going to help save it.
It will get $52,000 from the Partners in Preservation Program. The award was announced Tuesday evening at a cocktail reception in Chicago.
"We're very pleased. We can go ahead now," said Liz Safanda, executive director of Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley, about getting all that was asked for. Safanda wrote the proposal for the grant on behalf of an ad hoc committee whose members included people from the Norwegian National League and the International Order of Good Templars.
The money will be used to fix up the ship and to provide better shelter for it. The ship is stored under a canopy at Good Templar Park in Geneva.
The wooden ship sailed from Norway to Chicago for the 1893 Columbian Exposition to remind everyone that Scandinavian explorer Leif Erikson made the journey to the New World 500 years before Christopher Columbus did, in just such a craft.
The ship was displayed at Lincoln Park in Chicago for many years, then eventually ended up in Geneva at the private park. It's figurehead and tail are stored at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.
Earlier this year, the boat was listed as one of 10 most endangered landmarks in the state by Landmarks Illinois, due to exposure to sun, wind and rain. The boat sags in the middle and its ad hoc preservation committee fears it might crack.
Three marine conservators inspected the ship last weekend to determine what needs to be done. They will report their findings and a suggested plan by the end of the year, Safanda said.
One thing they did say: "This ship should not be moved more than one more time," Safanda said.
The ship has been stored at Good Templar off East Side Drive for 12 years. The park is owned by a fraternal organization that promotes temperance. The Chicago Park District wanted it out of Lincoln Park and a Scandinavian heritage organization that assumed control over the ship disbanded, leaving the ship in a West Chicago warehouse.
"They (the Good Templars) deserve all the credit for keeping it protected,"
This is the second year of the Partners in Preservation program run by American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
There was an online contest to determine the first-place winner, which was announced several weeks ago. The On Leong Merchant Association Building/Pui Tak Center in Chicago's Chinatown finished first and received $110,000, its full request.
The Viking ship made a strong showing, ranking no lower than fourth most days of the contest. Twenty-five projects competed. Fourteen received major grants; 10 other sites received $5,000 grants.
Factors that were considered included public voting results, the preservation needs of the site, historic significance, project completion ability and the role the site plays in the community.
The Peabody Mansion in Oak Brook received $80,000 for restoration of a solarium. The Grand Army of the Republic Hall in Aurora received $55,000 for window work.
Safanda said the money will be distributed in 2008. The rules of the contest specified that projects must be completed within 18 months.
For a full list of results, visit www.partnersinpreservation.com.