Hammond Castle Museum in Magnolia has been awarded a $135,000 grant for the repair and rehabilitation of the original steel truss and wire glass canopy covering the Courtyard. At 90 years old, the glass and steel structure has suffered weakened weather seals, and individual wire glass panels have broken over time.
The funding was provided by the Gloucester Preservation Committee under the state’s Community Preservation Act program that enables communities to create a local dedicated fund to be used for open space preservation, preservation of historic resources, development of affordable housing and outdoor recreational facilities development.
This is the first time the museum has submitted an application for funding to the committee.
The restoration of the clerestory represents the single largest capital project undertaken by the museum in over 50 years. Work is expected to begin in the late winter of 2020 and continue through the early months of 2021, which is during the season the museum is closed to the public.
“Our founder, John Hays Hammond Jr. built the castle to be a museum for all those on the North Shore. Hammond Castle has stood on the Gloucester shore for 90 years and been open to the public for much of the last half century,” said executive director, Linda Harvey. “We are so grateful to the City of Gloucester and the Community Preservation Committee for their support as we are dedicated to preserving this unique structure for generations to come,” she continued.
Hammond Castle Museum is a unique treasure on the coast of Gloucester, Massachusetts. John Hays Hammond Jr., known as “The Father of Radio Control,” was one of America’s most prolific inventors and a protégé of Guglielmo Marconi, Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell. Built from 1926 through 1929, and incorporated as a museum in 1930, the castle’s architectural style is mix of a medieval castle, French chateau, and a Gothic cathedral. It was custom built to encompass Hammond’s private residence, laboratory and museum quality collection of architectural elements such as the facades of medieval shops and doorways from chateaus. Also on display is Hammond’s extensive list of patents, his work with radio control and his work on echo guided torpedoes for the military.
