A National Treasure

1941

In July, 109 Danforth Street is opened as Victoria Mansion, named by William Holmes in honor of Queen Victoria, for the first time.

Holmes considered Victoria the “greatest woman ruler” and believed that the women of Maine should use Victoria Mansion as a “shrine to Maine womanhood.”

Portland socialite Mae Ford Haviland begins actively working to this end.

Clara Holmes transfers ownership of the Mansion to the Victoria Society of Maine Women of Achievement, a social group with an interest in Victoriana and Maine women’s history.

Anne M. Gannett is the Society’s first president; Mae Ford Haviland is its first recording secretary. The Society’s mission is to “foster the cultural arts; to recognize the worthy achievements of Maine mothers and daughters; [and] to preserve Victoria Mansion as a historic landmark.”

1971

With the help of Maine’s Senator Margaret Chase Smith, Victoria Mansion is designated a National  Historic Landmark, making it eligible for federal funds.

Curatorial outreach to Libby family descendants, as well as descendants of Morse nieces and nephews, begins in earnest. Family continues to restore original objects and furnishings to the museum today.

Victoria Mansion receives federal funding for the first time, and begins a 6-phase Plan of Critical Restoration Work outlining important work to be done for the next decade. 

A new replica of the original Ell Porch is installed along the Mansion’s rear ell.

A new replica of the original Ell Porch is installed along the Mansion’s rear ell.

The dangerous and unstable brownstone front entrance portico and front porch are removed and recreated in sand-painted carved wood.

The Mansion is awarded a National Endowment for the Humanities challenge grant and raises over $290,000 for restoration. Projects include a new copper roof and the restoration of the front porch and portico.

The dilapidated Carriage House is restored and renovated by architectural firm Portland Design Team. The building is leased and occupied by the firm until 1996, when it is converted into Victoria Mansion’s gift shop.

The missing spire on the Carriage House cupola was replaced in 2003 and a new copper roof and new gutters were installed in 2009. 

The dilapidated Carriage House is restored and renovated by architectural firm Portland Design Team. The building is leased and occupied by the firm until 1996, when it is converted into Victoria Mansion’s gift shop.

The missing spire on the Carriage House cupola was replaced in 2003 and a new copper roof and new gutters were installed in 2009. 

The original front doors are cleaned and over 100 losses in carving are replaced.

The former servants’ quarters in the northeast wing of the Mansion are renovated to house the Mansion’s first professional director and provide office and meeting space.

The Mansion receives one of the first conservation grants awarded by the Institute of Museum Services (now IMLS), to restore badly flaking painted plasterwork and the painted canvases on the Dining Room ceiling.

The perimeter fence is restored and the original slate sidewalk on Danforth Street is replaced. The Mansion’s stone driveway and side lawn are regraded.

The Mansion’s stone driveway and side lawn are regraded. A brief archaeological dig occurred as part of this project.

The stained glass skylight visible throughout the Stair Hall is restored by Robin Neely and installed by Taggart Construction.

The replica incorporates 40% of the original glass from the 1860’s skylight, which was badly damaged in the Hurricane of 1938.

The brownstone facade of the Tower is removed and rebuilt with both new and conserved stone, restoring its architectural integrity.

This is the largest exterior restoration project in the Mansion’s history to date and was made possible by the reopening of historic brownstone quarries in Portland, CT, where the original brownstone for the house was sourced.

A massive reproduction carpet is installed in the Stair Hall, on the stairs, and on the second floor balcony.

The Mansion’s badly worn and shifted front steps are reassembled atop a new concrete foundation.

A massive, sweeping balustrade and piers are recreated from newly quarried brownstone and the original ornate brownstone finials are replicated in new stone.

A complete restoration of the Turkish Smoking Room is achieved, beginning a new era in interior paint conservation. This project included the conservation of all painted surfaces and the replication of original fabrics and trims.

Funded in part by the Richard C. von Hess Foundation and Linda and Diana Bean.

A complete restoration of the Mansion’s Pompeiian-inspired historic Bathroom and Water Closet is achieved, including the conservation of all painted surfaces and original woodwork, recreation of the missing box toilet, and the installation of a custom floorcloth.

This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Work is done to restore the Mansion’s front Vestibule, including repairs to the decorative painted plaster ceiling and brownstone cornice, conservation of the marble floor, recreation of missing etched glass door panels and stained glass window pane, and conservation of the lighting fixture.

Conservation of the Mansion’s remarkable Reception Suite is achieved, including the structural repair of the bay window floor, conservation of all painted surfaces and original woodwork, and conservation of original lighting fixture and cornices.

This project was made possible in part by IMLS.

The original trunk room on the third floor is converted into a climate-controlled space for textile storage and conservation.

Here, the house’s original textiles provide a road map for future recreation of window treatments, upholstery, and more.

This conversion was funded in part by IMLS.

Conservation of the Parlor, the largest individual room in the Mansion, is achieved, including the stabilization and cleaning of the original painted decoration on the walls and ceilings, as well as the original lighting fixture, blinds, and window cornices.

A conservation-grade carpet pad is commissioned and installed to preserve the room’s original chenille carpet.

This work was made possible in part by a Save America’s Treasures grant, administered through the National Park Service.

The Girls Room opens as exhibition space for the first time, allowing for fuller interpretation of servant life in the Mansion.

Originally opened as the Housekeeper’s Office, further research prompted its renaming to the Girls Room, as indicated on the probate inventory compiled by Olive Morse in 1894.

Conservation of the painted decoration in the Stair Hall is underway.

As Victoria Mansion’s largest interior project to date, work has been divided into manageable projects by floor.

As part of this project, decorative plaster elements are being restored and stabilized.

The wood grained wainscoting was restored by Tony Castro in 2023-2024.

Supported in part by a Museums for America grant from IMLS, conservation of the second floor Hall is set to be completed in Summer 2025.

A project to restore the front façade’s missing balustrades begins. The original brownstone balustrades deteriorated over time; the balustrade over the Front Bay was removed from the building at some point in the late 1940s or early 1950s. After the portico and porch restoration, the other balustrades were removed.

Historic woodworker Bob Cariddi and his son Sebastian created new balustrades out of mahogany, which were then sand-painted by Peter de Paolo and Chris Lathrop.

The portico and porch balustrades were restored in Summer 2024. When the Front Bay balustrade is reinstalled, the Mansion’s front façade will be complete for the first time in over 70 years.

Victoria Mansion launches its first Preservation Trades Training Workshop under the guidance of window preservation expert John Leeke, a frequent Mansion collaborator.

This annual series of paid workshops for trades professionals aims to train more people in the special skills required to care for older and historic structures, helping to fill a dire need for Maine’s historic landmarks.

Restoration of the Front Bay begins, with the help of stone restoration expert Ivan Myjer, engineers from Stone and Lime Historic Preservation Services, carvers from Granite Importers in Barre, VT, and Keeley Crane Services.

A project ten years in the planning, this is likely to be the last restoration project for which we can replace brownstone in kind, as the quarries in Connecticut are now closed. This project is supported in part by the Davis Family Foundation, the Elsie & William Viles Foundation, the Virginia Wellington Cabot Foundation, and the Louella and Nicholas Martin Charitable Trust, and The 1772 Foundation, Inc. in cooperation with Maine Preservation.