Restoration continues on Barrington's White House
The restoration and renovation of Barrington's White House began in August and extensive interior and exterior work has already been accomplished.
Currently, the historic moldings and dentil work on the exterior of the house are being removed from the area next to the roof line and from the front dormer facade, original to the house. All of this work is being done in preparation for one of the major parts of the project - the removal of the roof, chimney and third floor walls.
In the coming weeks, a large boom will be added to the construction site to achieve this work. Plans call for steel supports to be added to the side walls of the house in order to carry the heavy load of the new steel scissor truss roof system.
An interior scan was made of the current roof, which will allow for an exact recreation of a roof with the same dimensions and slope of the old roof. New fire resistant cedar siding will be installed, as well as new windows and the east dormer. The chimney and the historic front dormer will be completely rebuilt.
Once the third floor is complete, the space will have a clear span across the entire third floor that allows seating for up to 150 people in the ballroom space.
To the south, work has begun on the new addition that will house the elevator, new bathrooms and an at grade entrance to the house. The basement is being excavated, new drain tiles are also being installed and a new basement floor is being poured. Work is almost complete on the foundation, ensuring that the building will last another 100 plus years.
The construction has unearthed several historic finds, including a slightly charred geography book from the 1850s, newspapers from when the addition was built in the 1950s, a variety of bottles, old door knobs and other assorted artifacts.
Visit Barringtonswhitehouse.com for daily photo updates and videos from many of the people in the community who are involved in the project.
For questions contact Beth Raseman braseman@barrington-il.gov or (847) 304-3476.