Fort Davis Post Hospital c.1910

During the 2005, 2006 and 2007 project seasons, staff and students from both the Graduate Program in Historic Preservation and the School of Engineering at the University of Vermont participated in summer programs of research, training, and implementation of the restoration of selected architectural fabric at the historic Post Hospital at Fort Davis National Historic Site.

Located in southwest Texas at the edge of a rugged extension of the Rocky Mountains, The Fort Davis National Historic Site is one of the most authentic surviving examples of a frontier military post in the United States. The Post Hospital, constructed largely of adobe (1874-1884), was considered one of the most up-to-date medical facilities in the southwest. The Hospital is currently undergoing restoration.

Project partners included the National Park Service and Cornerstones Community Partnerships (a non-profit devoted to the conservation of historic adobe buildings). The UVM team included skilled staff, student interns, and several graduate volunteers.

Within select rooms of the Administration Building and the North Ward, projects focused on the conservation of historic plasters, application of compensating plaster and reconstruction and reinstatement of missing wooden elements, such as windows, doors and floors, critical to the preservation and interpretation of the building.

Of special interest is the juxtaposition of conservation of historic lime plasters and the use of traditional Mexican plastering techniques in the installation of compensating plasters. The most recent phase of the project involved interns from several universities in the United States and Brazil.

To find out more about current projects or future field study opportunities, please contact:

Douglas Porter
School of Engineering
University of Vermont
341 Votey Hall
33 Colchester Ave.
Burlington, VT 05405-0156
(802) 656-4027 or
(802) 497-0689
Douglas.Porter@uvm.edu