Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
The Post - Athens, OH
The independent newspaper covering campus and community since 1911.
The Post

Despite facing setbacks with sand and clay deposits, the Athens Historical Society is still on schedule to finish moving into its new location by mid-December. The larger space will accommodate new display cases. 

Historical Society move has not been deterred by construction issues

Despite some setbacks earlier in the summer, the Athens County Historical Society is on track to move into its new location by December.

The new building, currently the Athens First Christian Church, 24 W. State St., was purchased for about $758,000, according to a previous Post article

"The old building was able to accommodate 40 visitors at a time, however the church can fit over a couple hundred," Tom O’Grady, executive director of the society, said.

The former building, 65 N. Court St., was sold to Cornwell Properties for $800,000, according to a previous Post article.

"We'll have more space to have programs and plan some events, which we did not have space to do before," O'Grady said.

But there have been some obstacles. The church currently has no elevators, making it difficult to move heavy items to the upper levels, he said.

The society plans to install an elevator, but O'Grady said the church currently sits on top of a large sand and clay deposit. That deposit would cause the building to become unstable if an elevator were added and used to lift heavy items, he said.

Teruhisa Masada, a civil engineering professor at OU, said because the building sits on sand and clay, one half could sink into the ground, causing the building to split apart.

“The problem with clay is that it can absorb a lot of moisture when it gets wet, causing it to become very soft and weak,” he said. “Sand on the other hand, will not absorb too much moisture ... so sand can remain very stiff and stable, enough to support the weight of a building during dry and wet weather cycles.” 

O'Grady said construction crews will add a special kind of pier beneath the building to prevent those issues.

He added that the architecture of the church itself will remain untouched. Built in 1916, the building has stood unaltered for 100 years.

"We're gonna display all the architectural features, we're not gonna put in any special new floors or anything like that." O'Grady said. "We're preserving the original architecture of the building."

He added that he expects the new location — which will include a museum and a larger gift shop — will attract more student visitors, which were scarce at the old location.

"We'll try to have more programs that appeal to the student population," O'Grady said. "We would like to help students learn more about local heritage so that they would have a greater understanding and appreciation of Athens."

He added the society will hold events in the new building during the move in process. They held a play in the new building this past weekend.

"I might visit if they were putting on something." Ben Fischer, a junior at OU said. “As an RA, it would be good to do events with my building so that would be nice."

The grand opening for the new location has not been given an official date yet but it is expected to be sometime during the Spring, O'Grady said.

kp003216@ohio.edu

Powered by SNworks Solutions by The State News
All Content © 2016-2024 The Post, Athens OH