Camp Hearne Diary - October 27, 2010

Camp Hearne Exhibit and Visitor Center

Camp Hearne Diary, October 24, 2010

Wow! We had a special opening called "A Day in the Life..." yesterday. It was great! The Bryan/College Station article really helped to get out the word.

Fortunately, they came back for the event and wrote a Sunday article and placed some great photos and video on their website www.theeagle.com.

Who was the star attraction?? Hard to say. Drs. Waters and Krammer are always well received. Everyone wanted to see Heino Erichsen, the former POW. J.B. Cheaney was great at storytelling. The barrack was pretty cool as well. The exhibit room surprised a lot of people. But then, there were the GIs out back. The WWII re-enactors, G-Company from Camp Mabry in Austin, surely had every one's attention with their weapons demonstration. I think they all are super stars.

I am waiting for photographs from TAMU students who were working on their class projects. Will post as soon as they are available. Until then, check out The Eagle.

Camp Hearne Diary August 11, 2010

Am I excited. The barrack is looking so good. We still need to build the ramp to the back door and a few finishing touches inside. Then we go outside to mark the parking pad, gravel the drive-through, set a culvert for the parking pad and add new landscape.

Check out the inside. The front part is the original barrack as it was during 1942. I love the sliding windows. Matt and Jim built the custom windows. They slide horizontally just like the 1942 plans show.

The middle part of the barrack is the exhibit area. Cannot wait to move the display cases in and implement our new interpretive exhibit. The Texas Historical Foundation has just awarded us a $5000 grant to help us redo our exhibit in is new home.

The back part of the barrack is the visitor center. A small kitchen sink is provided with a point-of-use water heater. There is also a small unisex restroom.

The flooring is white pine, 1"x6" tongue-in-groove long boards finished with tung oil. The wood is soft, but it is what they used in the '40s and it does look great.

It is really exciting to see this come together.

Camp Hearne Diary - May 16, 2010

Cannot believe it has been a month since my last post. Lots of little things, but important things have happened. The framers had to reorder the back door that has now been hung. The plumber, electrician and HVAC contractors have done their rough-in's. Last week S&K Drywall insulated the modern area, hung the drywall and began the tape & floating process.

Of course, our old nemisis came back..... rain. It has been awfully dry through April and May and we certainly needed the rain. Our construction timing seems to be wait until we need dry weather before it rains, but the area farmers & ranchers needed the moisture. This will slow the drywall and painting down a bit, but we should be ready to move to the next step in a week or so.

Smart Services (Hearne) helped with our plumbing... Paul certainly helped when we needed him at a crucial time.

Key Electric (Franklin) has been great to work with on the project. Dana has gone to great lengths to get everything according to plan and find the right recessed cans for our LED lighting.

Barker Heating and Cooling (Hearne/BCS) was in and out quickly. Philip has responded to every question and need without hesitation.

S&K Contracting has been just as efficient. Too bad the weather has changed, but they should finish soon. Anxious to see the painted rooms.

All of these guys were low bidders and all expressed a desire to be part of this project. Their advice and professionalism have been greatly appreciated and it has been fun to see this come together. We may not have had the best construction timeline due to inexperience, but we have certainly had the best advice and effort from all of our contractors.

Camp Hearne Diary - April 2, 2010

A custom double door was ordered to match the style present in several historic photographs and the plans. This mahogony wood door had to be sealed and primed with an oil base primer as soon as possible. I know now why professional painters deserve their fees. My attempt at painting may be enough to protect the door, but certainly someone more skilled needs to fix my job.

Check out the front. The gable vent is a perfect match!

Camp Hearne Diary - March 30, 2010

I know it has been a few days since my last post.... just busy, no other excuse.
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The Crew has built the front porch as per historic plans and framed the window sill & sashes. They have may a great effort to be historically correct.

Camp Hearne Diary - March 23, 2010

The batten boards are being attached in a pattern to mimic the barrack exterior. These "window frames" are faux windows. The interior of this part of the building houses the exhibit area and visitor center. Because natural light (UV-light) is damaging to artifacts, we chose not to install windows in this area. We are also using LED lighting fixtures that are void of UV emissions.

Camp Hearne Diary - March 18, 2010

The roof is finish! Just in time before more rain on Saturday.

CR Systems did a great job. So glad we were able to use a local roofing contractor. Everyone who has worked on the project to date seems to truly connect with our goal to preserve and teach WWII history.

Camp Hearne Diary - March 17, 2010

CR Systems, Inc. started the roofing job today. After the rain yesterday, a small section of the roof decking buckled because the protective felt was blown off. Rayne Knight, the company owner, had her crew replace the section.

The SBS Modified Bitumen SA roofing system consists of a nailable layer (shown here), a middle self-adhering layer and a top mineral surface area. Everything seems to be going up very well. Cannot wait to see the final product.

Camp Hearne Diary - March 16, 2010

If it is Tuesday, it must be raining.... and it is.... again!

Camp Hearne Diary - March 13, 2010

The painters came out on Saturday to get the job done before the roofers show up on Monday.

The black flat paint (primer&base coat) went on without a hitch. I am really pleased with the historic look. When the batten boards go up, it will achieve the 1942 barrack look we are after. A really nice job by local painter, Butch Crook and crew.

The painters also caulked the fascia & soffits to finish them out. The vented soffits were painted black. The fascia boards were painted white. The roofer will finish the eaves and the ridge vents with the mineral rolled roofing system that will have the similiar appearance of a 1942 rolled roof but have a much longer life span.

Camp Hearne Diary - March 8, 2010

The exterior siding has gone up. We selected HardiPlak which is a fiber cement board that is highly durable. It resists moisture and insect damage and is fire retardant. The smooth surface has a very similar feel to "tar paper" which would be the historic sheathing but certainly would not give us the durability we need for our replica. We also used a 12 inch vented Hardisoffit product that will allow for ventilation in the attic. We are ready for the painter!

Camp Hearne Diary - March 6, 2010

We are ready for the plumber to vent the drains through the roof so the roofer can get started on the 15th. Since the building is built on blocks, the joist and beams are the base for the exterior walls. This leaves no room for the drains and water lines to come up throught the floor. The crew double walled the bathroom and "kitchen" area to allow access through the floor behind a "faux wall" finish.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Well, rain again earlier this week!

The Crew has been really busy working out the details on the ridge vents. The original plans detailed the design, but left certain dimensions to the discretion of the local area.

The roofing system award went to a local contractor, CR Systems. They will begin work on the 15th. Getting ready for them means the exterior siding needs to go up, the soffits and facsia in place, the plumber needs to have the drain vents through the roof and, if possible, the painter needs to have the exterior painted. Hopefully, it will all fall into place.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

The Crew was busy with the roof felt after a few days of strange weather.

It snowed on the 23rd. A really heavy snow that kept lots of folks away from work.

Camp Hearne Diary - February 18, 2010

It has truly been a busy week. I missed coming by yesterday.

I love the diagonals. We will cover the exterior, but I love the way it looks from the inside. Matt said "pigtailing" the too short trusses was a simple fix so the roof is coming along. Everything is on schedule.

Camp Hearne Diary - February 16, 2010

Monday was a bitterly cold day and the Crew decided it was a good day to stay at home and let it dry out.

Today was cold as well, but the Crew worked on the shiplap sliding in the front of the barrack.

We finalized the roofing system specifications and sent out the RFP for the roof and plumbing.

Camp Hearne Diary - February 12, 2010

Well, it rain again yesterday. What a bummer.

Friday, the Crew put up the 4x8 sheathing until they ran out of material. The cool part was seening the diagonal shiplap go up. Several of the orginal photographs show this pattern. It really looks great and mimics the 1942 barrack interior.

Camp Hearne Diary - February 10, 2010

The trusses are finished. They still need to pigtail the prefabricated trusses to obtain the 12" overhang, but things are coming along. The exterior 3/4" OSB sheathing was going up quickly.

Unfortunately, more rain forecasted for Thursday.

Recieved a call from Bill ONeal from Carthrage. He is a history teacher and is writing a "photo" book about World War II sites in Texas. He is putting us in his Places to Visit chapter and was very complimentary about our efforts.

Camp Hearne Diary - February 9, 2010

The Crew worked a half day Monday for the rain hit us again. Tuesday was a good day and they were able to build the custom trusses needed over the 1942 "raw" area.

Robert Penney, our City's plant manager, has been checking each day to be sure we are in line with the City's requirements.

Things are looking great!

Camp Hearne Diary - February 5, 2010

We are raising the roof!!!

Matt, Jim and Coleman are setting the prefabricated trusses from Stark Truss. These are placed over the "modern" interior part of the building. The original barrack plan calls for 8' ceilings, but they did allow for a raised ceiling when necessary to accommodate refrigerators, etc. In our exhibit area, we decided to raise the ceiling another 8" so there would be more clearance (ventilation) above our display cases.

The Crew will install custom trusses over the barrack replica area to achieve the original appearance inside the barrack.

Camp Hearne Diary - February 3 & 4, 2010

Wouldn't you know the weather man was right.

Rain Wednesday & Thursday... not large amounts just all day.

Everything is really WET!

Camp Hearne Diary - February 2, 2010

Can you believe the walls are going up.

I met with Matt and Jim Monday to discuss the window framing. In order to support the roof, a double header is necessary, but the plans and photos for the sliding windows only show a single header.

Stark Truss was the low bidder for the prefabricated trusses needed for the modern area of the barracks. After weeks of delay, the delivery was finally Tuesday. Unfortunately, there was a discrepancy in our OH dimensions. As it turns out, extending the rafter tails will accommodate a vented soffit to the exact length... so all is well.

Rain is in the forecast for Wed and Thurs. After the summer drought I really hate to ask for dry weather.

Camp Hearne Diary - January 28, 2010

Forgive these late "data-dump" posts, but I am just getting use to blogging (and I bet there is a different term you techies use) --- Anyway, Melissa Freeman and Cathy Lazarus introduced our Camp Hearne vision to a group of 7th grade teachers attending the Region VI Texas History Conference in Huntsville. Our presentation seemed to go very well and we are pleased with the comments and even had some praise for our efforts. We will be putting most of this online at www.camphearne.com/ --- Matt and Jim took Thursday off due to an all day rain forecast. Of course did not rain, but they spent some time with Dr. Waters at A&M and reviewed the original diagrams and photographs from his collection. This was to achieve the original building "aesthetics" as possible. What I appreciate about these craftsmen is that they try very hard to mimic the look without sacrificing structural soundness. Obviously we want the building to last much longer that the original barrack plan's "20 year lifespan".

Camp Hearne Diary - January 25, 2010

After months of waiting, the Camp Hearne Visitors' Center barrack is becoming a reality. Hicks Construction began work last week, but today's progress is very exciting...or at least exciting to those of us that have been working on this project for a long time.

The cement blocks were set last week. The floor joists were put inplace today and the barrack replica's 20'x100' footprint is finally on the ground.

It was fun to share the moment with Texas Historical Commission's military expert, William McWhorter who happened to be in town completing his WWII inventory in Robertson County. We visited the Depot on 9th Street and Hwy 6. I pointed out that the prisoners were marched down 9th Street to get to the camp from the railroad. Later, as he put it, we recreated history when we drove to the camp through town on 9th.