October 26, 2008

Dear NELL Members,I just received this from Bob Trapani Jr. and wanted you to now aswe donated $2,500 to help make this happen.

Lighthouse Making History at Cape Elizabeth Lighthouse

For those who think lighthouseslike Cape Elizabeth are donemaking history in today’s world,think again.

The elegant 67-foot east towerat Cape Elizabeth is currentlyundergoing an historicrehabilitation to its concretebase, and in the process, the‘makeover’ is making its ownnew history.

The repair work to the light’sconcrete base, which is beingmanaged by the nonprofitAmerican Lighthouse Foundationand facilitated by J.B. LeslieMasonry Company from SouthBerwick, Maine, is addressingyears of surface spalling to thestructure caused by age andthe elements.

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)Ken Morse repairs a top sectionof the concrete base at Cape

Elizabeth Lighthouse

Why is a project that is designed to repair a concrete base sohistoric?

Earle G. Shettleworth, Jr. of the Maine Historic PreservationCommission explains, “Based on the lab analysis identification of

the cement base sample as agrappier cement, it appearsthat the cement base of theCape Elizabeth Light is originaland likely dates to the 1873-74tower replacement. This maybe the first known use of

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

(L to R) Jim Leslie, Ken Morseand Jake Johnson remove wooden formsfrom the east side of the concrete base

cement construction in Maine,making it especially significant.”

The rehabilitation project torepair the base of CapeElizabeth Lighthouse, whichstands majestic sentinel aboveCasco Bay near the entrance toPortland Harbor, started earlierthis month and should becompleted within the next twoweeks.

Working to replicate the original cement used to construct thelight tower’s concrete base is not the only challenge to properlyrepairing the structure in accordance with the U.S. Secretary ofthe Interior’s Standards for Preservation.

Jim Leslie, president of J.B. Leslie Masonry Company notes, “Thisproject has presented a few challenges - one being the concreteoverhangs. In repairing the spalling edges, you cannot just simplypour new cement or apply a skim coat patch. We built wood formsto match both the original board lines and concrete form marks onthe cement base in order to replicate the historic appearance ofthe structure, as well as to ensure the durability of the repairwork.” Leslie goes on to say, “The important part of a project like this one is the carefulprep work to remove the sections of failing

cement. We removedthe failing cementdown to the existinghard substrate and areusing the closestmatch that couldpossibly be duplicatedmixture-wise to theoriginal grappiercement.”

As interesting as thisproject has been froman historicalperspective, it has alsobeen nothing short of ateam effort.

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

Jim Leslie uses hand tools to carefullyremove failed cement down to hardsubstrate on a concrete overhang

The American Lighthouse Foundation, which serves as thesteward for Cape Elizabeth Light and 20 other lighthousesthroughout New England, has worked closely with the Maine

Historic Preservation Commission and United States Coast Guard,as well as with J.B. Leslie Masonry Company.

“In addition to initiating the consultation review process prior tothe work commencing at Cape Elizabeth, there was a lot of behindthe scenes work that occurred to ensure this project met the highstandards for historic preservation,” says Bob Trapani, Jr.,executive director for the American Lighthouse Foundation.

Trapani went on to note, “J.B. Leslie Masonry Company took coresamples of the concrete, which underwent lab analysis by

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

A close-up view of repairs to a spallingarea on the top section where the tower'sflashing is attached to the concrete base

Testwell, Inc. ofOssining, NY. Thisanalysis reportdetermined what typeof cement we weredealing with – in thiscase grappier cementthat is no longermanufactured. The datawas then reviewed bythe Commission andlater enabled EdisonCoatings of Plainville,CT to closely duplicatea cement mixtureconsistent with grappiercement.”

The extent of the team effort with the Cape Elizabeth projectgoes beyond the professional consultation that has occurred.

The need to fund the $11,300 project required a team approachas well. This is where the generosity of Mr. William Kourakos ofCape Elizabeth, who kindly donated nearly $9,000, and the NewEngland Lighthouse Lovers, a chapter of the American LighthouseFoundation who contributed $2,500, helped make the projectfinancially possible. Without their support, the critical repairs tothe light’s concrete base would not have occurred this year.

As for the actual rehabilitation work itself; it is in good hands withJ.B. Leslie Masonry Company. Cape Elizabeth Lighthouse is the

third American LighthouseFoundation project that thecompany has worked with theorganization on – the other twobeing the high profilerestorations of New Hampshire’sWhite Island Light in 2005 andMaine’s Pemaquid Point Light in2007.

“We take a lot of pride in thiskind of important work,” says

Jim Leslie. “The fact that ourcompany works on a lot ofhistoric structures gives us abetter awareness and respectfor maintaining the structuralintegrity of an historic buildingor in this case, a lighthouse.”

Trapani, Jr.)

Cape Elizabeth Lighthouse(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

Leslie concludes, “In the end, we not only want to adhere totheStandards for Preservation, we want to make sure the repairand restoration work stands the test of time so that futuregenerations will be able to see a lighthouse like Cape Elizabethlooking the same as we know it today.”

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

A close-up view ofthe deterioration thatoccurred to the light'sconcrete base on the

east side

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

A view of the special cement mixturefrom Edison Coatings

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

Jake Johnson works to mix around of cement

A close-up view of the

repair work by J.B. LeslieMasonry on the east sideof the concrete overhang

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

A close-up view of thecement mixture being

prepared for application

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

Ken Morse applies new cement torepair spalling damage

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

Ken Morse applies new cement torepair spalling damage

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

A close-up view of failing cementon the top of the base

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

Jake Johnson and Ken Morserepair a top section

Jake Johnson

vacuums around the baseof the lighthouse,

maintaining a clean workarea

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

A close-up view of spallingoccurring on an corner edge

of the light's base

(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)

Jim Leslie works on prepping a side section on the south

side of the base

Posted: 10/26/2008