Corinth Before
Corinth Restoration Complete
Topeka Capital Journal Newspaper Article
A multi-month project to restore three of the 10 historic in-ground mausoleums at Topeka Cemetery is nearing completion.
Corey Thomas, business development manager for Pishny Restoration Services in Lenexa, said the restoration of the century-old stone mausoleums began last spring and will be completed within the next few weeks. "Our goal is to make them last an additional 100 years," Thomas said.
Lowell Manis, superintendent of the cemetery, said the three mausoleums — all built in the late 1880s and listed on the Kansas and national registers of historic places — were "in a horrible state and falling apart."
"With any historic masonry, moisture is the big enemy," Thomas said, describing how the freezing, thawing and pooling of moisture can cause stone structures to deteriorate.
The restoration project began with Pishny employees researching different aspects of the mausoleums, such as the type of stone and mortar used so they could be replicated.
Thomas said two of the mausoleums are constructed of bottom ledge cottonwood limestone; the third is made of marble. Manis said the stone most likely was quarried in the Cottonwood Falls-Flint Hills area.
After the research was done, Pishny workers began dismantling the mausoleums, which were built as the final resting places for the Moeser, Redden and Price families.
Thomas said they began chiseling back the deteriorating stone to reveal a solid layer, which would serve as the foundation for the rebuilding of the mausoleum.
"It's surgery to some degree," he said. "We don't look at anything as being replaceable, but (we look at it) as preservation."
Thomas said native stone is then cut to recreate the original profile of the mausoleum and pinned to the existing structure with stainless steel rods. A lime-based product, rather than an epoxy or glue, is used to bind the new and old stone.
The iron gates for the mausoleums were taken to Pishny's shop in Lenexa, where they were restored and reassembled using rivets.
Thomas said the biggest challenge was removing the six 250-pound doors of the mausoleums without damaging the stone. A locksmith with a blacksmithing background was hired to drill out the locks and treat them with a lubricant-like substance.
"The Moeser (mausoleum) hadn't been opened in at least 40 years," Manis said.
The restoration of the three mausoleums, estimated to be about $106,000, was paid for by a Kansas State Historical Society Heritage Trust Fund grant and matching funds raised from private donors, he said.
Once this project is completed, Manis said the cemetery would apply for an additional grant to restore the remaining seven mausoleums, which he estimated to cost about $500,000. The remaining structures were built between the late 1880s and 1912.
Manis said the cemetery had no perpetual care plan in place for several decades because family members typically took on the responsibility of caring for the grave sites of loved ones. In 1911, even though there were no legal requirements, the cemetery established a perpetual care program. However, the fees assessed then would not keep up with rising maintenance costs in future years.
Currently, Manis said, no fund exists for the maintenance of the mausoleums.
The cemetery board of directors has signed an agreement with ASA Marketing Group to develop a plan to raise funds for the cemetery's maintenance, he said. ASA was involved in fundraising for Hummer Sports Park and the baseball complex at Lake Shawnee.
Thomas said Pishny has two divisions: One specializes in historic building restoration; the other, cemetery and monument restoration. Recently, the company worked on the restoration of the Chalmette National Cemetery in New Orleans, which was submerged under 12 feet of water after Hurricane Katrina.
Thomas said in-ground mausoleums like the ones in Topeka Cemetery are rare.
"I've seen only one set of mausoleums like this in my life," he said. "For Topeka, this is a real treasure. I've not seen one with as much character and history."
Jan Biles can be reached at (785) 295-1292 or jan.biles@cjonline.com.
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