The weather won’t cooperate

south front of houses was to shade the interiors, catch the breeze and provide a cool place to sit before the invention of air conditioning,” Jenkins said.

Plans for exterior and interior renovation of the house began in 2006, when HBF engaged renowned restoration paint colorist Susan Buck to test and identify the original paint colors on the John Mark Verdier House – the clapboard exterior, interior, doors and shutters. Buck earned her Ph.D. in Art Conservation Research at the University of Delaware in 2003 and her Master’s degree from the Winterthur, the University of a Delaware Program in Art Conservation. She is an Art Conservator and Paint Analyst and lives in Williamsburg, Va.

She conducted microscopy analysis on the exterior clapboard, interior plaster and woodwork along with the exterior and interior doors.

The original door of the John Mark Verdier House had been replaced with a replica during the 1970s renovation of the house as the original door was in poor condition, Sundrla noted. Because HBF still had the original door, Buck was able to conduct the microscopy analysis.

Her research showed that both the original front door and the second-floor jib-door were painted with a thin layer of deep redbrown paint, followed by a second deep red-brown paint, and then a grain-painting sequence in the third-generation. This was typical of houses in that time-period to grain their doors to give the appearance of mahogany as a show of wealth and stature.

Jenkins said the toughest decision was whether to restore the original front door or to faux grain the 1970’s reproduction. In the end it seemed best to save the original door, to keep it in storage out of the elements. “Technology will continue to progress and in another 50 years that door might shed valuable information,” she said.

The John Mark Verdier House is a premiere representation of Beaufort’s residential architecture and was a highly visible statement of Verdier’s rise as a successful merchant and planter in the early 1800s.

A 2012 repainting of the exterior brought the house back to ca. 1863 when the color was a pinkish-tan. At that time the house was occupied by the Union Troops as the Adjutant General’s Office for the duration of the war.

In 2017, HBF launched the “Paint the Lady Campaign” with the goal of exterior repair and painting of the house. The decision was made to bring the house back to the period of its construction, ca. 1804, when the Verdier family resided in the home. Work began in 2020 and the exterior paint and clapboard repair was completed in 2021.

Master colorist Stephanie Poe was engaged in December 2022 to grain the 1970s replica door to resemble mahogany. A Charleston resident, Poe has studied under three of the masters in the field, Mike McNeil, Jean Sable, and Pierre Finkelstein. She has traveled around the world to study and master the authentic and historical methods used in Italian plastering, wood graining, and marbling.

At that same time, HBF brought in master craftsman Chad Bond to restore the decorative door surround.

“It is not uncommon for a project like this to hold so much history, but I think it is uncommon to have so many people on board and excited to help bring an important piece of history back into glory,” Bond said.

Historic Beaufort Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit education foundation created to preserve, protect, and present sites and artifacts of historic, architectural, and cultural interest throughout Beaufort County. For more information on the entity’s mission and history, visit historicbeaufort.org

It’s never too late to learn

Letisha Scotland, right, and Lorrie Causey of the Low Country Council of Governments go over last-minute details during the giveaway of digital tablets for senior citizens Wednesday morning at Burton Wells Senior Citizens center. Scotland said 350 T-Moblie tablets will be given away to seniors in Beaufort, Jasper, Colleton and Hampton counties, and two interns will be available to help with how to use them. All six senior centers in Beaufort County will receive 150 of the popular digital devices. Bob Sofaly/The Island News

Driver rescused from marsh

Braves’ leadoff batter Andres Esparza, right, is all smiles as he is congratulated by team mate P.J. Stanley after hitting a home run during their Beaufort County Parks and Recreation Adult Baseball League game against the Red Snappers on Monday at Burton Wells Athletic Complex. Esparza had metioned earlier to the team that he did not like to lead off but went on to swing at the first pitch of the top of the first inning, hitting the ball over the left center field fence for home run. The game, however, was suspended because of rain and lightning in the area. Bob Sofaly/The Island News from page A1

In his ruling, Judge Sprouse said that the plaintiffs’ request was improper given that a similar challenge had already been denied in the Circuit Court. The Circuit

Court decision in January of 2022 was in favor of the City, ruling that a legal process was followed in granting approvals for the respective projects.

However, the plaintiff has appealed this decision and it is currently a pending matter in the South Carolina Court of Appeals.

“The City is appreciative of this second denial by the Circuit Court,” Beaufort Mayor Stephen Murray said in a news release. “From the beginning, the City has defended these approvals. All property owners are entitled to a fair, transparent, and legal path to improve their property, so long as it complies with the City’s development code.”

From staff reports

Late Tuesday morning, June 13, Burton firefighters rescued a female driver from a single vehicle wreck on Trask Parkway that caused both eastbound lanes to be blocked.

Just past 11 a.m., a Sheldon Fire District chief officer who was driving on Trask Parkway came upon a passenger vehicle that was off the road in the pluff mud in the area of 1980 Trask Parkway. While unable to reach the vehicle due to the pluff mud, he notified Beaufort County Dispatch that the driver appeared to be unresponsive and request- ed additional resources respond to the scene.

A Burton Fire District fire engine from Grays Hill and Beaufort County EMS arrived moments later. Due to the driver’s apparent medical condition and no information about the possibility of other passengers inside the vehicle, Burton firefighters utilized a 24-foot ladder from their engine to make a bridge and cross the mud to reach the vehicle. Burton Fire Captain/Paramedic Steve Kenyon was first to arrive at the vehicle and confirmed only one occupant inside, a female driver, who appeared to be having a medical emergency and was unresponsive.

Burton Fire District’s ladder truck arrived on scene and crews used the large 105-foot ladder to reach the vehicle with medical equipment and a rescue basket. Firefighters stabilized the driver, placed her in the rescue basket, and removed her to waiting EMS crews where she was transported to Beaufort Memorial Hospital.

Traffic on Trask Parkway was delayed for more 45 minutes while emergency crews operated. The condition of the driver was unknown at press time.