HARMONY, Pa. – Historic Harmony received a $15,000 Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development grant to support repairs and electrical service for its historic 1805 barn on Mercer Road.
The barn is one of eight Harmony Museum properties.
Built by the communal Harmony Society that founded Harmony in 1804, the barn was later owned by David Ziegler, eldest son of Harmony’s Mennonite “second founder” Abraham Ziegler, who purchased all Harmonist holdings here in 1815.
The Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission considers the farmstead eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.
Barn restoration. The funding will help pay for repair and replacement of floor beams damaged during 180 years of agricultural use and later water damage, and electrical service for lighting and other systems.
After Historic Harmony bought the barn in 1999 to prevent demolition, it financed $30,000 in roof repairs with private donations.
Supported by another state grant and private contributions, an historic structure report was prepared to guide future preservation planning.
Other work. Historic Harmony is funding additional capital projects involving several of its sites, including a log house being reconstructed on Mercer Street, the barn and the main museum facility on the town diamond in the National Landmark District, with about $20,000 obtained recently through an anonymous $10,000 grant accompanied by a brief matching-fund drive.
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