A historical museum located in downtown Port Orchard received a grant that will allow them to maintain and improve its building, and will implement these improvements this month.
“This building is 101 years old and it has never been insulated,” said Jud Turner, president of the Board of Directors of the Sidney Museum and Arts Association. “This will protect us from extreme temperatures, both hot and cold.”
The house, which has about 1800 square feet of floor space, houses art and memorabilia from the region’s history. Turner said the insulation will help protect the collection from any further deterioration.
“We will be able to better care for the art and artifacts in our collection by maintaining consistent levels of heat and humidity,” Turner said.
The museum is heated by natural gas, but a considerable amount of heat escapes due to its construction and the absence of insulation. So the new insulation will also help to decrease a prohibitively expensive monthly heating cost, which reached the $800 level during the cold weather last year. “We could barely afford to pay our bills this winter,” he said.
The museum received a $12,850 grant from the C. Keith Birkenfeld Memorial Trust, which is administered on Bainbridge Island and also approved a recent grant to Helpline in Port Orchard.
Turner said the money has been received and the projects are in progress.
The insulation is being installed by Boulton Insulation of Bremerton, and the paint, which will match the light current colors, will be done by Sabelhaus West of Port Orchard.
The structure was built as a Masonic Lodge and has housed several businesses since its 1908 construction, including the Red Cross and the Port Orchard Independent. Turner said the museum has occupied the space for about 40 years, but he isn’t sure about the dates. With this in mind, the museum is conducting a research project about how it has been used during the last century, and is asking anyone with information about this to call (360) 876-3693.
Additional information about the museum is available at www.sidneymuseumandarts.com.
