Savannah home of Girl Scouts founder getting face lift

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Posted 8:14AM on Monday, January 28, 2002

SAVANNAH - A piece of Savannah's history the home of Girl Scouts founder Juliette Gordon Low is undergoing a $2.5 million restoration. ``This is going to be one of the biggest restoration projects in the city you'll never see,'' said Fran Harold, director for the house, which was built in 1764. ``Because if we did it right, no one will notice.'' One example of the old house showing its age was the spiral wooden staircase. Tour guides could only bring visitors up and down the stairs in groups of three because the banister rungs had separated and broken. Creaks and cracks were common sounds underfoot. ``It was scary,'' said Sherry Feathers, a local Girl Scout Troop leader who recalls touring the house. One of three projects under way includes stabilizing and restoring the staircase. A total of 12 projects are scheduled. ``Now, we can run up and down the stairs like Juliette Low did,'' Feathers said. Construction has closed the house to tours since November, but it is expected to reopen in April. Completion of remaining projects, such as an elevator, depends on available funding. The project has two endowments of $750,000 each. In April 2001, the state's most visited house had its 2 millionth visitor. ``That's what's taking its toll on the building,'' Harold said. Restoring the staircase was a major priority. Omar Khalidi, in charge of the renovation, said the task was not simple, because the spiraling staircase was the only access between the four floors. Offices on the fourth floor were temporarily moved. When movers took office supplies down with dollies, ``it was thundering like a bobsled. It was awful,'' said Adrienne Schmetzer, an intern at the house. Six hydraulic lifts and 13 screw jacks were used to stabilize, raise and level the staircase. Then, the moment of truth came when the jacks came down and 10 workmen and curators gathered on the stairs, hopping up and down. The results were perfect. But the crew was soon on to finishing the other projects: creating extra office space and a kitchen, plus an orientation room for visitors. In 1818 Savannah Mayor James Moore Wayne purchased the house and lived there until 1831 when he sold it to his niece, Sarah Anderson Stites Gordon and her husband. Over the years, her son, W.W. Gordon II and Eleanor ``Nelly'' Kinzie Gordon moved into the house. In 1860, Juliette was born, the second of six children. In 1912, Juliette organized the first Girl Scouts meeting.