I'm excited to bring you up to speed on the transformation that is taking place throughout the historic Fulton County Courthouse. Progress is moving forward quickly, and on time!
The week of my last blog post in January, exciting things were beginning to take place in the Common Pleas Courtroom. Scaffolding was arriving and being set up all through the room. Soon after, restoration specialists
(John Canning Co.) would arrive to begin the spectacular transformation of the Common Pleas Courtroom.
Here is where I last left off...
This is a photo of scaffolding going up in the back of the courtroom. The yellow canvas has been pulled off the walls, down to the original wallpaper. The horse hair insulation has also been removed, and replaced by new insulation.
Here is another view of the work being done to remove the wallpaper. You can see the yellow canvas still surrounding the arched painting above the judges bench.
Here a crew member works to remove the canvas and wallpaper, prepping for the next step of dry walling and priming the walls.
The piece of wood paneling removed in this photo shows a green wall. I wonder if the courtroom was once green?
It WAS!! The Fulton County Historical Society has postcard of the courtroom postmarked 1913. Here is an image of the front of that postcard!
This photo shows the pilasters in the corners of the courtroom that had been removed to put the Law Library in back in the 1950's. These pilasters, woodwork and window trim will be restored from where it was pulled out for the library.
Artists have been scraping off layers of the interior of the tin dome (the bluish color) to analyze the material and color of it's origin. They have found a copper/bronze finish that was applied to it at one time to make it look like copper. We can't wait to see what they recreate it to be!
Another view of the primed courtroom.
Judge Robinson is posing in front of the empty picture frames in the back of the courtroom. Unfortunately there are two paintings missing that were removed in the 1950's. The paintings are of two Native Americans, presumably Chiefs Wauseon and Ottokee, facing each other, and a painting of a bald eagle. The pictures had been seen rolled up in the attic as late as 1984. We haven't located them and if anyone has any ideas where these paintings might be, please contact me at: Toni Schindler, 419-337-9699 or tschindler@fultoncountyoh.com
From around the courthouse...
Here are some photos from other areas around the courthouse, as all other infrastructure throughout the building is also progressing on schedule. The marble lining the stairs will be removed.
Insulation has been installed in the Magistrate's courtroom, as well as other areas throughout the building.
Steel framing is going in throughout the building.
The old elevator is continuing to be removed. The shaft will be outfitted with floors and walls, and will be used as functional space on each floor. Here is a photo of the old elevator shaft.
This is a view of the new elevator.
Here is a photo showing insulation going up in an office. You can see several different eras of wallpaper have been uncovered.
The Italian-imported stained glass windows that are on display on the first floor of the courthouse have been removed for cleaning and restoration.
The stained glass window that lined the top archway of the doors to the Common Pleas Courtroom has also been removed for cleaning and restoration.
Here is more steel framing outside of the court staff offices.
Under the tin ceiling throughout the courthouse is some interesting wallpaper.
Back to the Common Pleas Courtroom...
Here is a view of the start of the new risers in the back of the courtroom. The risers will recreate the theater style seating that was once there prior to the law library being built.
Below is proof that risers existed in the back of the courtroom prior to the law library. You can see the shadowed stair step outline in green below.
This is the beginning of the scaffolding that now fills the entire space of the courtroom. Art restoration specialists have been working to remove the dirt and varnish from the paintings.
In the below photo, you can see the artists working from the "Dance Floor" to restore the courtroom paintings to their former grandeur. The results are absolutely jaw dropping. It is truly amazing to watch their work, and to see the painstaking care as they clean and restore these paintings. Below you will see just a few of the first results we have seen from their work.
Here is an up close look at the intricate ceiling decor. There are several different colors of paint, and many layers of paint applied throughout the years.
Another view of a before restoration and cleaning picture of the ceiling.
This is one of the first paintings the artists started working on. When we were shown these next few images, you could literally hear sounds of shocked of surprise at the color that is coming through during the cleaning process. The sky blue sections are the sections of the paintings that have been cleaned. The dark parts next to it haven't yet been cleaned. The entire painting will be magnificent once it is fully restored!
Here is a sneak peak of what this painting restoration process looks like. You can see that the artist is working in the top right hand corner. Just look at that blue sky. Amazing, right!?
This painting's entire top half of the sky has been cleaned, showing the sky being "sky blue". We just can't wait to see these paintings fully restored. The Courtroom will be truly stunning!
And last but not least, here is a photo of the bench that has been cleaned back to it's natural state. It's absolutely gorgeous.
Here is a photo of the bench prior to cleaning the wood to it's natural state.
Thank you for keeping up with our progress through our blog. Stay tuned for the next update, which will feature breathtaking images of the paintings as they continue to be transformed as well as other infrastructure updates that are occurring throughout the courthouse!
