From the October 2 edition of the Lock Haven Express:
Razing the Roof: Work on moving train station begins
By WENDY STIVER —
[email protected]
Stocum’s Construction is removing the hip roof from the historic train station at Mill Hall in preparation for its move to a site in Lock Haven. Contractor Marc Stocum is seen on the ground, and the crew members on the roof are, from left, Andrew Fera, Zak Pittinger and Eric Clausen. Absent from the photo is Jeff Lapp.
WENDY STIVER/THE EXPRESS
MILL HALL — The historic, 113-year-old train station in Mill Hall will make a trip to its new home in Lock Haven “topless.”
Stocum’s Construction started removing the hip roof Monday.
Contractor Marc Stocum said the original rafters are in such bad shape they cannot be saved for reconstruction.
One rafter was actually charred, he said, apparently from a fire sometime over the building’s long history.
The top part of the roof is coming off fast, he said Monday, but when the decorative roof supports are removed, the workers will take great care to preserve them.
The building will be secured for weather during the project, Stocum said.
“It will look a whole lot different by the end of this week, weather permitting,” he said.
The City of Lock Haven is organizing the move and donating a vacant lot behind City Hall on Bald Eagle Street for the historic structure’s new home, a triangular patch of lawn at the railroad tracks.
Donations from individuals, clubs and businesses are helping finance the move, as are grant dollars from Clinton County’s environmental fund. No city tax dollars are committed to the project, which could cost $60,100.
City Council approved the original contracts on Sept. 24 and OK’d additional contracts this week.
One is with Bryce Saylor & Sons Inc. of Altoona for $5,000 to remove and reset four highway signs on Route 220.
Even without its roof, the station will be too tall to pass under the signs.
The other contract is with Hanna Electric of Lock Haven for $500 to disconnect and reconnect those signs to their electrical source.
Hanna Electric deducted at least $200 from the cost as a donation, and Jim and Carol Hanna have pledged $2,000 toward getting the train station to its new home.
The station must move because owner Bob Rightnour wants to expand Rightnour Manufacturing Co. and needs the space behind his building on Pennsylvania Avenue.
He has reportedly extended the deadline for moving the station at least twice, in the interests of preserving its rich history, and is donating the building to the city.
With the roof work going well one day into it and no inclement weather in the forecast, the next step, according to City Manager Rich Marcinkevage, is to line up a date with the moving contractor, Earl Miller & Sons of Everett.
Also, a schedule needs to be finalized with PennDOT, the utilities companies that have to raise or remove lines and the railroad crew that has to remove warning signals at the Mill Hall crossing to let the train station pass.
The station should arrive in the city by moving down Route 220 in the wrong direction.
Elisabeth Lynch, who works for the county planning office and is a volunteer on the Mill Hall Planning Commission, presented the idea to save the building to City Council in August.
Council and the community reacted with funding and donations — a desire to preserve the type of building that is disappearing from the landscape of American history.
Once the train station pulls in to its new site, it will need a foundation and a roof.
Remodeling of the structure can be accomplished at a more leisurely pace, city officials said.
Section: News Posted: 10/2/2007