January 2025

The Restoration of the Chicken House

Part 1

By Paul Harvey

Thought that Coolspring was an engine museum?  Duh, of course it is!  And one of the best!  So, why am I writing about a chicken house?  Read on as the puzzle resolves.  But we have to start back at the beginning to see the story unfold.  It will be a very pleasant tale.  The photo below shows the building today.  This is my view of the chicken house from my rocking chair.  The view invokes many pleasant memories each morning, and I am very happy with this project!

The Chicken House was built by Dad, Earle Harvey, in the early 1950s.  Amazingly, almost everyone in town had a small chicken coop in their back yard.  Most are gone now, but I can see them all with my mind’s eye.  It was my duty after school to feed and water the chickens, and deliver the eggs to the store across the street for resale.  We usually had two dozen white leghorns, which produced very well, and a huge white rooster we named Charlie.  I got along fine with him, but my Dad did not, always getting his shin spiked.  So, Charlie became a Thanksgiving dinner!

Years later, when I owned the general store, I sold the huge brown eggs that my six Rhode Island Reds produced.  Those were good days!  I also always had six or eight “bantams” that free ranged and were very happy doing their thing.  They were always friendly and sociable.  Yep, the building had a long history housing chickens, and did a great job!

However, in the next decade or so, the building became a catch-all for all kinds of museum trash.  Seems that it was easier to just stuff all kinds of junk there.  Soon, the squirrels got the idea and six inches of debris was on the floor.  Time to save the building!

As I get older, I wanted to find a place to house so many of my unique mechanical goodies.  Hmmm!  Just looking out my kitchen window I see the chicken house.  I easily see it every day!  It will always be there!  I never thought about making it an engine and artifact display area.  So, I called Dobson Construction and they are transforming this building to a delightful display building at much less cost than a new structure.  Excellent job.  So, let’s see what is happening!

The first job was to stabilize the building.  The 70+ year old buff brick columns were failing, and the structure was sagging in its center.  Dobson’s skid steer was used to support the building while the new back wall was being built.  Interesting to note that the huge black walnut tree, seen in several of these photos, was there when I was a kid 70+ years ago.

This is the excellent idea of Dobson Construction!  The old brick pillars are gone, deep concrete pads were poured, and a heavy laminated beam was placed.  The structure is completely level and stable now.  By doubling the floor joists and installing new flooring, it will support considerable weight.

With extensive cleaning, the interior appears as original with the roosting platform, laying nests, and feed room in far distant.

With a huge walnut tree hovering over the building, we see the indomitable squirrels have already filled the laying nests!  All the hurdles have been overcome, and the structure is becoming a beautiful museum display building.  Hmmm! Now what are the best items to show here?  I’m already thinking and choosing, but that will have to be a later topic.

The structure is blessed with a huge, multi-pane front window.  The choice display should be placed here to be viewed from the outside.  Note that one pane is etched, “BROOKVILLE GRANITE COMPANY”.  There is just no history found about this company.

Really looks like a big project, but I’m going to make it happen.  So, if it is going to be a quality display, a lot of work has to be done!

The original floor of 5/8-inch yellow pine had many rotted spots.  Since engines will be displayed here, the floor joists were doubled, and new treated 1½-inch planking was installed.  It is now a stable display area, and will be able to support the weight of several small engines.

As the entrances are being completed, the new red shingles have already been installed.  Beautifying appearance!

This has been an exciting project so far!  I feel that preserving a vintage and significant structure, as well as making a prime display area, is very significant.  Part 2 follow up will be published in the Spring.