Mamie Eisenhower home temporarily closed due to water issues

The recent rains Boone County has received during the past month has taken its toll on the area, including the Mamie Eisenhower Birthplace.

On June 27, water began collecting in the basement of the historic home, eventually amounting to four inches of standing water. The Boone County Historical Society (BCHS) has temporarily closed the home until clean-up efforts are completed.

Pam Schwartz, BCHS executive director, said the standing water was caused by a number of factors. The first was the frequent rainfall. Others were tree roots that had grown into the homes sewer line due to little use of the septic system in the home, and a poorly installed sump pump line that had been re-routed into the sewer line.

Because the water began collecting in the basement as a tour of the home was underway, Schwartz and other BCHS members were able to work quickly to get historical artifacts away from the water so they wouldnt become damaged. Scott Smith, BCHS board member, said members of the tour even helped in the process.

After the water had been removed and the carpets had been cleaned, the four inches of standing water returned the following Monday. The cleaning and drying process began again, and as of Thursday afternoon, driers were still in the basement of the home, working to dry the carpet. Schwartz said the drying process is taking longer than usual because of all the heavy file cabinets and other objects in the basement that could not be moved to allow the carpet underneath to dry. She said they want to make sure the carpet underneath those objects is dry before the driers are removed.

Local businesses have also removed the tree roots from the sewer line and corrected the routing of the sump pump line. Schwartz said she hopes these measures will put an end to the water problems at the home.

The humidity in the basement, which was estimated to be as high as 100 percent due to the water and hot temperatures, caused several of the text panels and frames to fall off the wall, with some becoming damaged. Though none of the historical artifacts in the basement were damaged by water, the humidity levels may take a toll on them in the future.

Theres no visible damage now, but because of the high levels of humidity, there could be long-term damage, Schwartz said. For example, a dress in the basement that appears to look fine today, 50 or so years from now, the effects of the humidity will start to show.

Schwartz said historical museums aim to keep humidity levels at 70 percent or below in order to preserve historical items. However, the Mamie Eisenhower home does not have a way to control the humidity levels in the home.

Schwartz said they have done their best to accomodate people who want to tour the historic home while it is temporarily closed, particularly those who had scheduled a tour of the home months ago. She hopes the home will be open for regular business within a couple weeks.

See the original post:
Mamie Eisenhower home temporarily closed due to water issues