Experts examining courthouse damage

Stone conservators were in Clarendon this week to examine deposits left on brick and tile following flooding in the 1890 Donley County Courthouse in February when a winter storm froze water lines in the building’s attic.

Casey Jordan and Fran Gale, working for the architecture firm Hudson-Gallagher, spent Monday and Tuesday trying different solvents and cleaners to see which will work best to clean the damage.

Gale said it is unclear what the black deposits are on brick following the flood of water that came down the walls near the front door of the courthouse. It is not mold, but she said it could be water that came through a fireplace and chimney flue, which would be either ancient soot or perhaps a chimney waterproofing material from the building’s construction.

The pair were also working on stains on the tile inside the main entrance of the courthouse. Those stains were responding well to cleaners designed to get rust stains out and may actually be caused from some ferrous material in the tiles oxidizing following the flood.
After overnight treatment, Gale said they were seeing success with treatments on the black stains on the red brick outside.

Gale and Jordan will use their findings to help develop a plan to repair and clean the flood damage.

The conservators were also here to exam ongoing spalling of the building’s original sandstone elements. The county and its architects hope to get money from the state historical commission to address the problem of the stone facing sloughing off over time in many places. One of the more critical places where the spalling is taking place is the Courthouse cornerstone where the erosion is slowly destroying the names of county officials from 1890.

The stone spalling has been an issue for decades and was a subject of concern and discussion during the 2003 restoration of the building. Cost at the time prohibited that issue from being addressed. It is hoped that almost 20 years of advancements in technology may provide a solution now.