This is the most frequently asked question in our tasting room and when we are out and about in Richmond these days. As of this writing, we are planning to move in summer 2016 and nothing has derailed us yet.
The City Stables property was purchased by the City of Richmond when the Scott’s Addition neighborhood was first being developed into the first industrial park in our region. It was always for the purpose of supporting public works projects and it is listed as a contributing structure in the Scott’s Addition historic district. In order to conduct a historic rehabilitation of the property, we needed more information about the building’s history. But where to start?
Our architectural historian for this project is the amazing Debra McClane. City tax records claim the building was built in 1940. But were the tax records correct? The first thing that Debra did was to find Sanborn fire insurance maps to figure out when the buildings that are there now appeared. She was able to find a map for 1924 that showed the property was owned by the City, but the buildings were not there yet. The next map was in 1952 and voila! They are there.
If you have seen these buildings, you will notice that they are made with granite blocks and mortared with decorative beading in many places. It is a solid stone building and a bit overbuilt for mere horse stables. What was happening in architecture between 1924 and 1952 that would warrant an ornate, earthquake-proof set of stone barns in a region where stone barns are rare?
The Depression and WWII were the big events of that time period. Both events dictated that there was not a lot of money around for such frivolities. During the Depression, FDR created an agency called the Works Progress/Projects Administration, which hired skilled artisans and architects to build public buildings all over the country. In my previous career, I would find tiny ornate post offices and other public buildings all over rural America built through the WPA. So I posited, this must be a New Deal project. That was all Debra needed to hear to figure the rest out.
Throughout The Annual Report of the Director Public Works 1940 the City of Richmond details the purpose, sources of funding (thank you, WPA), timing (1940) and number of construction workers required to build the building (about 17). There is even a picture of a similar building built the same year in the same neighborhood. The Maintenance Utility Building complex at Summit and Clay was built from old stone cobbles that were pulled up from the streets. It was intended to be a place where public works staff could assemble, sleep and shower and where 20 mules could be stabled. The photograph shows which windows and doors of the current structure are original, and therefore to be preserved.
The stories behind this building are a window into our City’s history. We look forward to learning more as we know more questions to ask. But in the short term, the bottom line for the development of the property is that yes, it is a historic building built in 1940; and yes we are going to have to save all those adorable, creaky old doors and windows.
-Courtney Mailey
