| Is it worth saving? |
| The Friends of the Murphy House is a subsidiary of the Friends of Historic Preservation, Mount Clemens and is in the application phase of becoming a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Our organization was formed by dedicated community volunteers who are committed to the preservation and utilization of the Murphy House [School Administration Building] in Mount Clemens, Michigan. |
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The Murphy House is an irreplaceable landmark in Mount Clemens ' history worth saving.
On initial viewing, the interior of the building may look ‘burned out.’ Take a closer look at the photographs and you’
ll see entire different story. The photos reveal that mostly soot covers handsome painted woodwork along the walls,
ceilings and floors. This soot gives the illusion that everything inside the house is scorched and damaged when, in
actuality, the paint protected most of the woodwork! In some of the photos, the soot was removed to show the original
finish still intact.
The arson fire was started near the main staircase. The staircase itself took the brunt of the fire, yet it remains
structurally sound. The areas where it’s damaged, there is enough intact woodwork for duplicating. A member of
Friends of the Murphy House has the ability and expertise to duplicate the damaged spinals with a lathe duplicator.
Once restored, most people would never know they staircase was ever damaged.
The Murphy House contains several beautiful tiled fireplaces. Since at the time of the fire they were covered with
drywall, the fireplaces came through with minimal to no damage. Our organization is currently in the process of
researching if the covered tile is in fact valuable Pewabic tile. A few of the photos below reveal the shiny green tiles
behind the drywall.
If you were to walk around the exterior of the building, one would notice a crack in the brickwork on the west side.
This damage was apparent before the arson and the crack itself does not run into the basement and does not reach
the second story. This would many conclude that this crack is caused by a foundation problem, but more than likely
from some object that struck the side of the building at one time. Friends of the Murphy House are asking the school
board to allow a structural engineer to examine the building.
On initial viewing, the interior of the building may look ‘burned out.’ Take a closer look at the photographs and you’
ll see entire different story. The photos reveal that mostly soot covers handsome painted woodwork along the walls,
ceilings and floors. This soot gives the illusion that everything inside the house is scorched and damaged when, in
actuality, the paint protected most of the woodwork! In some of the photos, the soot was removed to show the original
finish still intact.
The arson fire was started near the main staircase. The staircase itself took the brunt of the fire, yet it remains
structurally sound. The areas where it’s damaged, there is enough intact woodwork for duplicating. A member of
Friends of the Murphy House has the ability and expertise to duplicate the damaged spinals with a lathe duplicator.
Once restored, most people would never know they staircase was ever damaged.
The Murphy House contains several beautiful tiled fireplaces. Since at the time of the fire they were covered with
drywall, the fireplaces came through with minimal to no damage. Our organization is currently in the process of
researching if the covered tile is in fact valuable Pewabic tile. A few of the photos below reveal the shiny green tiles
behind the drywall.
If you were to walk around the exterior of the building, one would notice a crack in the brickwork on the west side.
This damage was apparent before the arson and the crack itself does not run into the basement and does not reach
the second story. This would many conclude that this crack is caused by a foundation problem, but more than likely
from some object that struck the side of the building at one time. Friends of the Murphy House are asking the school
board to allow a structural engineer to examine the building.
| Click on any photo below to see an enlarged version. |
