8 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY JULY 13-19, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com 831 There are over 200 historical structures dotting California State Parks’ Monterey District— many of them in some state of disrepair, if not outright dereliction. Yet maintaining and restoring those buildings is “a challenge,” acknowledges Matt Bischoff, a historian and cultural resources manager for the Monterey District, given State Parks’ relatively limited budget. Enter HistoriCorps, a Coloradobased nonprofit that enlists volunteers for the hands-on work of preserving historical structures on public lands across the U.S.—bringing with it a staff well versed in the craftsmanship and preservation skills needed to restore aging structures while retaining their original look and feel. California State Parks has worked with HistoriCorps for a number of years, but the nonprofit’s expertise was most recently put to use for the first time in the Monterey District—at a dilapidated but historical former dairy barn on Point Lobos Ranch (soon to be the new Ishxenta State Park) near Point Lobos State Natural Reserve. On a sunny May morning, a HistoriCorps crew is putting the finishing touches on the structure just off Highway 1, from which there are stunning views of the Carmel Bay coastline. Built in the 1940s, the barn was part of one of the many diaries that used to operate in the area, functioning as a loafing shed where cows were kept between milkings. It was later used to keep horses, before falling into disrepair over the following decades. HistoriCorps project supervisor Jason Benson first visited the site last November and found a structure with crumbling roof shingles that clearly needed to be replaced. But it was only after digging into the project that the team found further issues, such as termite and powderpost beetle damage to the roof rafters, ridge beam and skip sheathing, which also needed replacing to some extent. “Most preservation projects are like that—it’s hard to predict until you really tear into it,” Benson says. Benson and his HistoriCorps crew began the work in mid-April. The nonprofit rotates in crews of volunteers one week at a time; they come from across the country, camp out near the worksite (HistoriCorps provides the food), and usually spend five days on a project before making way for a new set of volunteers. The four-week project at Point Lobos Ranch enlisted about half-a-dozen volunteers at a time. “They love working on these projects in beautiful locations and preserving our shared history,” Benson says, noting that volunteers took advantage of the nearby beaches and hiking trails at the end of their workday. “We ask people to rough it a little bit, but most people enjoy it.” As for the work itself, maintaining the barn’s historical integrity was the primary objective, which meant new redwood shingles akin those on the original roof. After addressing the underlying structural issues over the first two weeks of the project—and demolishing a non-historical addition in the process—the final two weeks were spent rebuilding the roof, which runs roughly 40 feet end-to-end and stands about 15 feet at its apex. “We try to keep the exterior as original as possible,” Benson says. “Preservation has a certain ethic that we want to follow—replacement-inkind and things that most people don’t think about, but are important to preservation principles.” Bischoff notes that the volunteers “did everything and more than what we had planned for,” also re-roofing a smaller, original side-structure that was used as a feeding trough area. “HistoriCorps has been a great partner for us,” he says. “The thing I love about it is that they’re training [people] and keeping that trade alive. Historic preservation is such a unique skill set and takes a lot of knowledge and experience, and they’re passing that on.” With the barn once again functional, State Parks plans to initially use it as storage with an eye to eventually opening it up to the public as an example of the area’s agricultural history. “It’s an important component of this larger historic ranch and dairy,” Bischoff says. “The main thing is to preserve the history—not lose the building.” Historical Helpers Nonprofit volunteers helped State Parks preserve some of Point Lobos’ agricultural history. By Rey Mashayekhi Remnants of the county’s dairy farming history were recently shored up by volunteers, seen on the barn roof. “Getting it dry and in good condition roof-wise was a priority for State Parks and the focus of our project,” says Jason Benson of HistoriCorps. “The main thing is to preserve the history.” TALES FROM THE AREA CODE DANIEL DREIFUSS
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