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| Time damaged windows. |
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| This view from 1924 shows the full-sized window panes. |
New windows
will be installed in the front walls of the Oneida Stake Academy building this
week. Much appreciated funds from an anonymous donor have made their purchase
and installation possible. The windows are being made by Sierra Pacific
Industries of Salt Lake City. Seasoned window installer Ralph Cook from
Hillcrest Construction will set them.
Since the
building’s construction 125 years ago, the windows have been changed more than
once, as panes were broken. The earliest pictures of the building show that the
large rectangular windows were each made up of two single panes of glass in
double-hung frames. In later pictures, the large single panes were replaced
with four smaller panes. Windows of both styles remain in the building today,
their aged and severely warped wooden frames irreparable. They will be replaced
with large paned windows to match the original design of the building.
“Because we
are restoring the Oneida Stake Academy Building to be used for contemporary
use, the board felt it was wise to match the original design of the windows
with contemporary materials in order to minimize maintenance costs for the
future,” said Nathan Hale, chairman of the Oneida Stake Academy Foundation.
The
building’s original architects understood how to work with Mother Nature in
order to light and cool the building using the windows. Without the modern
conveniences of electric lights and air-conditioning and heating, that
knowledge was critical to make the building capable of providing an atmosphere
in which students could learn.
A double-hung
window means that both the upper and lower panes of a window can be raised and
lowered, using a system of weights built into the window frames. Taking
advantage of the properties of hot and cold air, those early builders could
create a cooling draft in a room simply by raising the lower panel and dropping
the upper panel on a window. This principle was applied to cool the entire
edifice by strategically opening and closing windows in different parts of the
building.
Even the
shape of the windows was more than a fashion statement. The tall rectangular
shape of the windows allowed sunlight from the earliest rays of morning to the
latest evening light to enter the rooms, extending their use as long as
possible. Lantern light would be used after the sun set if the building was
still in use.
Although
the new windows will appear as they did a century ago, they will not open as
they did due to the benefit of modern heating, cooling and the litigious nature
of today’s society.
Also in
progress is the building’s front door. Working in his shop on West Oneida, Wes
Dryden is deciphering the process used by the pioneers to duplicate the
original door. More on that story will appear in a future edition of The
Preston Citizen.
Anyone
interested in being a part of the restoration of the elegant Oneida Stake
Academy building as a cultural center/museum of local history is invited to
contact one of the OSAF’s board members for i deas. For example, a donation of
$2500 will install another window. Gifts of higher amounts will help restore
additional features of the building. Additional information on this idea can be
found on an earlier post on this blog and at www.oneidastakeacademy.org. Board members are: Nathan Hale,
Sydney Hale, Lyle Fuller, Elliott Larsen, Paul Judd, Saundra Hubbard, Necia
Seamons, Larry Bradford, Kim Wilson and Jim Brown.
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