ROOSEVELTSCHOOL FIREPLACE

FUNDING REQUEST FOR INSTALLATION IN THE COMMUNITY CENTER

CRANFORD, NJ

SUMMARY

The Cranford Historic Preservation Advisory Board (HPAB) needs funds to install an historicfireplace in the entrance lobby of the CranfordCommunity Center, 220 Walnut Avenue. The fireplace was removed in August, 2010 from the Roosevelt/Solomon Schechter Day School on Orange Avenue, Cranford. The total amount needed for thereturn and installation of the tiles is $6,950.

THE FIREPLACE

The RooseveltElementary School was opened in Cranfordon September 10, 1928, with14 class rooms, including a special kindergarten room with a tile fireplace.

The fireplace, measuring about 8 feet wide by 6 feet high, was created by the Flint Faience Company and features a scene made up of 10 tiles, 6 inch by 6 inch each, portraying a duck and two hens in a barnyard. This particular mantel is featured in Flint's 1926 company catalog (design #6778).

Joseph Taylor, president of the Tile Heritage Foundation, identified the tiles and has stated that they are “increasingly rare as one by one public schools are either modernized, transformed for reuse or demolished. Flint is among the highly revered and collectible tiles on the antique market today." The auction value of the fireplace was established at about $12,000, but its historic value inestimable.

CRANFORDBACKGROUND

Over the years, Cranford has lost many of its early schools, replaced by newer buildings, but relatively few photos remain of the early schools’ exteriors and interiors. On hearing that the RooseveltSchool, which had been vacant since 2008, was scheduled to be demolished in mid-September 2010, HPABobtained permission from CranfordTownship to tour and document the building. While it had been altered over the years, first by Cranford, then by theSolomonSchechterDay School, it still boasted tiled halls and the fireplace in the kindergarten room, still in excellent condition.

After determining that CranfordTownship had no funds to remove the fireplace, HPAB alerted the Union County Cultural and Heritage Programs Advisory Board that thefireplace was in jeopardy. The Union County Freeholders authorized $9,975 from the Union County Open Space, Recreation and Historic Preservation Trust Fund to hire Larry Mobley of Mobley and Company, a noted tile restorer from Michigan to remove, pack and store the tiles until an appropriate new location was determined. The tiles are still with Mr Mobley in Michigan.

The County has now determined that the fireplace does belong in Cranford and has approved its installation in the Cranford Community Center Lobby. It will be built in front of the office area near the reception desk, where it can be viewed and enjoyed by the people of the Town. The fireplace will be non-working, solely installed for decorative purposes. The Community Center is located next to the public library and is used constantly by many Township groups, and is within walking distance of downtown.

TIMETABLE

Installation will begin as soon as total funding is received. It is hoped it will be completed by December, 2013.

PERSONNEL

The installation will be done by a professional historic tile installer, and supervised by a professional in historic preservation.

-Installation - Larry Mobleyis a Historical Tile Reclamation Specialist who has completed preservation projects such as a Flint Faience Tile fireplace and drinking fountain in the school in Royal Oak, Michigan, and Flint Faience tile sign from a Delphi plant in Flint, Michigan.

-Historic Preservation Professional - Maureen McDougall holds a Master’s Degree in Historic Preservation from the University of Pennsylvania. She is also a member of the Cranford Historic Preservation Advisory Board.

FUNDS NEEDED

Costs

Construction of base - $1,750

Installation of tiles - $4,700

Plaque- $500

Total - $6,950

Funds Needed -$6,950

FUNDING REQUEST

Organizations and corporations are being asked to fund the installation of the fireplace at one of the following levels:

-$500 or more - Preservationist

-$250-$499 - Historian

-$100-$249 – Conservator

Funds are held in an account in the Spencer Savings Bank set up specifically for the fireplace.

All contributions are fully deductible for tax purposes.

RECOGNITION

The names of contributors at each level will be listed on a plaque mounted next to the fireplace. Donors will be mentioned in all publicity relating to the installation, and information about the donation can be used by contributors.

PRESS

“Preservationists hope to save fireplace from Cranford school set for demolition” -

“Cranford Historians Hope To Restore Roosevelt Fireplace” -

CONTACT

Please call or email Maureen Strazdon, Chair, Cranford Historic Preservation Advisory Board, at

908-347-9970 or for more information about the project. Checks made payable to “Cranford Historic Preservation Advisory Board” can be sent to Cranford Historic Preservation Advisory Board, Hanson House, 38 Springfield Ave, Cranford, NJ 07016.

The Cranford Historic Preservation Advisory Board (HPAB) is a Township Committee, established in 1993. The mission of HPAB is to aid in the preservation of Cranford's architectural heritage through documentation of significant structures, education of the public as to the value of preservation, and advice to the Township on laws and activities impacting preservation. Contact us via our web site at .

Cranford Historic Preservation Advisory BoardApril 1, 2013