The 2007 WCG Angels Project focused on fire damaged materials from the Georgetown branch of the DC public library. The event took place at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on October 13, 2007.
Conservators examined and assessed 40 objects that were exposed to smoke damage during the fire. They also rehoused and surface cleaned more than 25 of the objects, so that they could be safely stored, handled, and transported. This site was chosen due to a recent fire.
On Monday, April 30th, 2007 the Georgetown branch of the DC public library caught fire at noon. The library roof was in flames when the firemen arrived. Due to complications in the area with unreliable water pressure and fire hydrants that did not work, the fire quickly spread and the roof collapsed onto the second floor. The library’s holdings were stored in this area, in particular the Peabody Room which archived original maps, documents, books, and papers relating to Georgetown. Members of the Washington Conservation Guild responded to the scene that day, quickly set up a chain of command, and coordinated with DC library officials to perform disaster recovery over the next 24 hours.
On the day of the fire, firemen removed paintings and books from the library, the library hired freezer trucks to remove damaged objects and WCG helped find conservation labs into which objects could be brought for temporary storage and treatment. The WCG consulted with AIC, Heritage Preservation, and Debbie Hess Norris of the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation. Six conservators also helped with the salvage efforts that evening. In addition, WCG held a raffle to help fund disaster recovery efforts at the library and the following fall, an Angels event was held for the library where examinations and condition assessments were made for objects from the Peabody room. Many objects were surface cleaned and rehoused as part of this Angels event.
One of the high priority objects was a map of the Washington DC area from before the civil war, which was very rare because most early maps of DC have been lost or destroyed. A copy of the Maryland Gazette with a headline about the signing of the declaration of independence was also an object of note. The WCG Angels event focused on items that had not been freeze-dried. The books were of highest need of conservation, including many 18th and 19th century books printed in Georgetown and the Taylor family bible. There are photographs, works on paper and paintings that have yet to be conserved, but the collections that have been treated are being readied to go back into use once the space is renovated.
Summary by: Lisa Young, Conservator in Private Practice and WCG Angels Project Chair, and Mark Greek, Photo Archivist for the DC Public Libaries, Washingtonian Division
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