Matthews Historical Foundation

Matthews North Carolina

"Preserving our Past for the Future"

Before After

Today

Massey-Clark House

232 North Trade Street

Matthews, NC 28105

After months of restoration work, the Matthews Historical Foundation reached their goal in 2010 of renovating and restoring one of the earliest homes in downtown Matthews, returning it to a useful part of the community. The renovated building will house the new Matthews Heritage Museum and Matthews Historical Foundation office. The Museum will explore the first 100 years of Matthews history. We are looking for local artifacts and memorabilia. For more information on the museum and how you can donate, please see our website www.matthewsheritagemuseum.org.

The Massey-Clark House, built in 1880, was home to two different families, the Massey’s and later the Clark’s until 1977, when it was acquired by the Town of Matthews. Then it served as the home of the Matthews Help Center for 25 years, until 2004. The Matthews Historical Foundation acquired the home in 2009 with a plan to restore the building. Read more about the renovation.

Museum Update

The Matthews Historical Foundation hired Leslie Kesler in June to assist in research and the development of exhibits and interpretive panels for the new Matthews Heritage Museum. She works part-time and her museum knowledge has been a valuable asset to Paula Lester in the preparation and planning for our heritage museum.

Leslie comes to us with more than twenty years’ experience in North Carolina history museums. She has worked in all museum fields from researching and cataloguing artifacts to developing educational programs. The last five years of her career have been spent as historian and curator with the Charlotte Museum of History. Her full-time position was eliminated due to budget cuts but she continues part-time work for them.

Organized and energetic, Leslie adds enthusiasm and excitement to our project. From listening to new ideas to checking if all our necessary paperwork has been filed, she is an asset who, we hope will continue on after the heritage museum opens as museum and foundation director.

Renovation Photos

Commemorative Brick Order Form

Massey-Clark House History

RENOVATION DETAILS

December 2009, the Matthews Historical Foundation acquired the Massey-Clark House. In January 2010, plans were underway for the renovation of this 1880 home situated in the heart of downtown Matthews. Urban Architectural Group was selected as the architect and SQ Construction the general contractor.

After plans were finalized and a permit issued, the first order of business was to remove additions added over the years and evaluate the overall structure. The original central hall had a bathroom and closet in the middle. A room with a connecting hallway had been built onto the rear of the building. This addition had a low ceiling and was leaking when we took possession. All the walls and ceilings had been drywalled, probably in the 1950s. The kitchen area in the home was an early 1920s addition; however, when the drywall was removed it was in poor condition and needed reframed. Insulation was installed wherever possible.

Scott Query from SQ Construction removed the bathroom and closet in the middle of the home, returning it to the original central hall design. The room and hallway at the right rear of the building was completely removed. After a new foundation was poured, the bathroom, storage closet and hallway was constructed in its place. The small porch at the back was added. The doorway between the kitchen and middle room was enlarged, making one room. The kitchen floor had several layers of linoleum, which was removed and the original floor refinished, nail holes and all. All the drywall was removed from the walls and ceilings, revealing the original “tongue and groove” wood. We found heavy paper tacked under the drywall popcorn ceilings and some walls. These tacks were removed during the restoration and the walls and ceilings sanded in preparation for painting. The windows on the Kristopher’s side were in extremely poor condition and had to be replaced. The other windows are original. The windows are extremely low by today’s standards. One theory is the house had a dirt floor when it was built. Later, the addition of a wooden floor brought the window height down.

As in all renovations with buildings 130 years old, there were challenges.

There had never been central heating and air conditioning in the building. Space heaters and window air conditioners had been used. We installed a new heating and cooling system in the attic. The electrical system and plumbing was completely redone and brought up to code.

An old well was discovered under the right rear addition. It had been filled-in earlier and cemented over.

Today, the house sits low on the lot. Originally, Trade Street was dirt. As the street was paved and repaved over the years, the house began to sit lower and lower on the lot. Because of this, drainage has been a problem. A stainless steel and polymer French drain system was installed on three sides of the house. The drainage system was camouflaged by a stone retaining wall and rock.

The hearth and the supporting wood in the left front room was so deteriorated it fell through to the ground. A new wooden box was constructed under the house; the hearth was rebuilt and bricked. Two fireplaces had spent many years covered with drywall. To complete the project, all the fireplaces were redone and new tile or brick installed. The fireplace with the board covering the opening had been bricked up many years ago and had been used for a pot belly stove by the Clark’s.

All the floors were refinished. Some flooring needed to be replaced. The floors in the right front room were in such bad condition they could not be refinished. Reclaimed old “heart of pine” flooring was installed over the floor. The only original mantel is in this room, however the brick hearth and surround was added. The other three mantels are from the old Smith house, which was located at 534 West John Street and burned in a fire exercise. MHF kept the mantels in their carriage house, hoping to find a use for them one day. They worked out perfectly in the Massey-Clark House. The house was painted inside and out. The front door was too narrow to meet code. After searching for just the right period door and sidelights, they were located in Charlotte and stand at the front of the house. After seven months, we received the Certificate of Occupancy August 10, 2010. We reached our goal of renovating and restoring one of the earliest homes in downtown Matthews, returning it to a useful part of the community.

Renovation Plans

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