As the McHenry Mansion undergoes restoration after December's fire, it seems appropriate to answer a reader's question about Modesto's most celebrated home.

It is a logical query: "How did the city get the McHenry Mansion? Did they buy it, and, if so, how much did it cost?"

A brief historical review is needed.

Two years after Oramil McHenry's death in 1906, his widow, Myrtie, remarried. The groom was lawyer William Langdon, whom the newspapers described as "the fighting district attorney of San Francisco County."

After Langdon's term of office expired, he and Myrtie McHenry moved back to Modesto and into the downtown mansion. Eventually, he became a local Superior Court judge, and the couple had two children. They also were raising young Merl McHenry, whose father was Oramil.

The McHenry period ended in 1919 when the family moved to the Bay Area. Langdon had just received an appointment by the governor to be the first presiding justice of the 1st District Court of Appeals, in San Francisco.

Although the McHenrys left town, they retained ownership of the mansion and controlled its use.

The building soon became a Seventh-day Adventist sanitarium, and there still are people living in this area whose relatives were born in the McHenry Mansion and were treated for illnesses there.

That period ended in 1923 when it was reported that Langdon had converted the building into what the newspapers called a "first-class apartment house."

Eventually, it had 14 apartments, each with a kitchenette and bath.

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BARE: Modesto's McHenry Mansion has passed through many hands

If you can't prevent a home repair crisis, the best you can do in advance is to know the tradesmen you can trust, or at least how to find one. The Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona maintains a free list of accredited businesses. The rating is based on the number of complaints and how they were handled.

The Arizona Registrar of Contractors maintains a public list of contractors, their license status, how long they have been licensed, and information on complaints open and closed, including those that were resolved, withdrawn, resulted in discipline or were affected by a contractor's bankruptcy.

Know good tradesmen

Make your own emergency services list by trading names with friends and neighbors who have experience with specific firms or individual tradesmen.

Better yet, use your experience with quality tradesmen who've done your home's preventive maintenance during less critical moments. Besides possibly avoiding some emergencies, their routine maintenance work will give you a better idea of their workmanship than comparing the size of ads in a crisis.

Also, when a freak storm hits blowing off roofs or a snap hard freeze bursts pipes all over the city, contractors can be backed up for days or even weeks. So, it can't hurt to call a company with whom you're already a customer in good standing.

"A lot of times what happens is if I've got a customer, if something happens, even if I can't get out there right away (to do the repair), I might be able to put a band-aid on it to buy a little time until I can get out and do a repair," says Mike Blass, owner of Blass Roofing.

Consider a restoration firm

And when he's too swamped, Blass said he recommends calling a company like Better Way Services, one of several emergency and restoration services companies that do whatever needs to be done, quickly.

"They'll even take your furniture out of your house and put it in storage," says Blass. "If there's a storm or broken waterline, whatever, a home and some kind of catastrophe, day or night, I don't care, they send somebody out. ... "

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... Home-repair crisis averted

WASHINGTON -- An ambitious San Joaquin River restoration plan once again divides the House and Senate.

On Friday, the Republican-led House took up an annual energy and water spending bill that pointedly omits any funding for restoration of the once-teeming California river. The Senate's bill, by contrast, steers $12 million toward efforts to restore water and salmon to the channel below Friant Dam east of Fresno. Caught in the middle are the farmers and federal officials trying to make the restoration work.

"The proposed construction activities will be starting in the near term, so the funding needs will be increasing," Ron Jacobsma, general manager of the Friant Water Authority, said Friday.

The river funding dispute will have to be negotiated as part of a final bill that provides about $32 billion for an assortment of energy, Bureau of Reclamation and Army Corps of Engineers programs. It's a nationwide package with special relevance for the Central Valley, serving irrigation and environmental purposes.

The House bill, for instance, includes $36 million for restoration of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, a 10 percent cut from this year. The bill and its accompanying verbiage also push policies in certain directions. Lawmakers, for instance, are using the House bill to encourage quicker completion of studies for potential water storage projects on the upper San Joaquin River and in the Sacramento Valley, among other locations.

In a similar vein, Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Sacramento, used a colloquy with subcommittee leaders to urge more flexibility from the Corps of Engineers on policies governing flood-

control levee vegetation. Many California lawmakers insist that the state should not be subject to a strict no-vegetation rule imposed elsewhere.

On the San Joaquin River restoration, more than mere dollars separate members of Congress.

Farmers and environmentalists agreed six years ago on a long-term restoration plan, thereby ending a lawsuit begun in 1988.

House Republicans want to kill the current river restoration program and replace it with a far less expensive plan focusing on warm-water fish instead of salmon. Driving the point home, Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Turlock, sponsored an amendment to be considered when the House resumes debate this week that prohibits federal funds from being used to reintroduce salmon to the river in fiscal year 2013.

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House GOP wants to nix San Joaquin's restoration

HENRYVILLE It is typically a mothers instinct to be protective.

However, for Trish Gilles being protective may be an understatement. She finds herself looking to shield her children from anything deemed risky. After the March EF-4 Henryville tornado tossed Trish, her family and home into the swirling storm, she admits to being a bit extreme when it comes to the safety of her family.

Although a mother never needs a purpose for being protective, Trish wanted to explain.

I truly have good reason for being overly protective, given that I nearly lost my entire family just a couple of months ago, she said.

She believes time may diminish her intense feelings, but Darrell isnt so sure.

Trish has always been a very protective mother over our children. he said. I am the parent to encourage them to take on challenges and even some risks, while Trish is the one who pulls them back and tells them they need to be careful.

The children seem to deal with the differing parenting styles without difficulty; they understand why their mother is cautious and they have learned when to push and just how far to push.

SOME MEMORIES COME BACK

In earlier conversations, the family found it difficult to recall or provide details of their survival. Although Darrell and Trish do not believe they passed out, they simply could not invoke specifics for the time period between the moment the house began to rip apart and the instant they located one another in the field.

However, time will often allow repressed traumatic memories to be released and as the family heals both physically and emotionally, they remember. They remember the house being torn and rolling to the side; they remember falling against the wall of the closet where they huddled; they remember being torn from one anothers arms; they remember fear; they remember being hurled to the ground they remember. Trish recalls it was much like being on a cruel roller coaster ride and explained, It took my breath away.

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WE SURVIVED, A HOPEFUL SPIRIT AFTER THE STORM: The drive back to Henryville

01-06-2012 15:48 Land Corp. at (914) 861-4103 can handle your needs for home renovation in Newburgh, NY. We offer professional remodeling services from home restoration to commercial renovations.

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Land Corp. - Renovation in Newburgh, NY - Video

San Marcos Texas State University has won a Community Stewardship Award from the Envision Central Texas organization for the Spring Lake Aquatic Restoration project.

Texas State was honored in the Natural Infrastructure category during a special presentation held recently in Austin.

The Natural Infrastructure category recognizes an individual, company, organization or governmental entity for planning and beginning implementation of a significant project designed to enhance or protect the regions environment and natural resources.

The Spring Lake Aquatic Restoration includes the removal of structures associated with the former Aquarena Springs theme park, grassland restoration, removal of exotic vegetation, establishment of a vegetated buffer zone between Spring Lake and the adjacent golf course and removal of all submerged structures associated with the former theme park.

The goal is to restore in-stream aquatic habitats, wetland resources and water quality conditions to benefit resident and migratory wildlife species in Spring Lake.

The project is being done in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Spring Lake is home to eight federally-listed endangered species. It is also the site of significant archaeological resources, with artifacts showing the site has been inhabited by humans for 13,000 years, making the location unique in North America.

Envision Central Texas presented Community Stewardship Awards in six categories. In addition to the natural infrastructure award, presentations were made for new development, redevelopment, public planning and policy, innovation and raising public awareness.

Envision Central Texas, a regional non-profit planning organization, was created in 2001 to lead and implement the development of a regional vision to address rapid growth in Central Texas. Its mission is to serve as a catalyst for regional cooperation and planning to help preserve and enhance natural resources, economic vitality, social equity and the quality of living in Central Texas.

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Stewardship: Texas State earns restoration honors for lake project

Restoration of Longviews historical Judge J.N. Campbell House should start showing some visible signs in coming weeks, according to Lynette Goodson with Preservation Longview.

She and other Preservation Longview board members on Thursday afternoon met with representatives of Total Engineering Services of Longview and Kirk Acheson, project architect. While behind-the-scenes work of raising money, applying for grants and working with state historical preservation officials has been on-going, Goodson said visible restoration work has not taken place.

This is a momentous event, she said of Thursdays meeting. They should report back to us in two to three weeks with drawings and plans that well get to the city and the state but people should start seeing progress on the restoration later this summer.

Acheson said his firm is mostly working on the structural and mechanical engineering aspects of the project.

The house is basically in pretty good shape, he said after an inspection. A lot of the beams and timbers are in good shape. Theyll have to beef up the under structure and reinforce the floor joists on the second floor and do work on the foundation to keep it from settling more.

While the house on South Center Street is sound, he said the fact it is being re-purposed from a residence to public use and that building codes are much different, means a lot of work will be needed.

It has challenges with installing a sprinkler system, putting in HV/AC and new electrical, Acheson said.

The Judge Campbell House is an 1872 Victorian home with a history that dates to Longview's earliest beginnings. It is one year younger than the city and was home to several prominent residents, including the late Gregg County Judge James Nathaniel Campbell, the younger brother of a Texas governor.

The Queen Anne-style, neo-classical home became a Texas historical landmark in 1965 but has fallen into disrepair in recent years.

For information on the project call (903) 235-9087 or (903) 643-1155, or email lynettegoodson @yahoo.com.

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Restoration of Longview historical home starts

SHIPPENSBURG -- The restoration and return of a Shippensburg University landmark will be celebrated with a rededication ceremony at 4 p.m. Saturday.

After a three-month restoration, the fountain in front of Old Main returned home in April. Originally dedicated in 1896, it was a gift from that year's class. This year's dedication ceremony will mirror that of its predecessor.

"It's going to be kind of interesting," said Tim Ebersole, executive director of university relations. "We looked at the original program from 1896 when the class dedicated (the fountain). We're going to have people that represent the people that were there."

Participating will be SU President Bill Ruud, master of ceremonies; B. Michael Shaw, SU Council of Trustees; Krista Williams, Council of Trustees student representative; Franklin County Commissioner Bob Thomas; Shippensburg Mayor Bruce Hockersmith; Kelly Atland, immediate past president of the alumni association; and Jonathan Michael, a student, said Pete Gigliotti, communications director at SU Each participant will represent the person in that position in 1896, Gigliotti said. For example, the fountain song and SU alma mater were sung in the past ceremony; this time around, Atland will recite the song and Michael will sing the alma mater.

An iconic landmark and most popular photo backdrop on the campus, the fountain's absence from campus for restoration this winter left a kind of void.

"When they took out the basin and there was

The fountain was disassembled and sent to Robinson Iron in Alabama in late January.

A team of companies led by Kreilick Conservation LLC, Orland, oversaw the renovation. The conservation company is partnered with Robinson Iron and Outerspaces, a Pennsylvania-based landscape architectural firm.

The project included putting down new concrete, relaying some of the original stones and then constructing a new basin. The fountain was returned in April and is now up and running.

The fountain was last renovated in the early 1960s. It has received regular painting and maintenance since it was first installed.

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Shippensburg University's historic fountain being rededicated Friday in ceremony copying 1896 event

PASADENA - A classic 1963 mural of the first Rose Parade painted by famed Claremont artist Millard Sheets is coming home.

More than two years after it was taken down from the former Home Savings lobby on Colorado Boulevard in a Chase Bank corporate makeover, the entire 50-foot mural is expected to be installed in the lobby of Pasadena City College's Hutto-Patterson Gymnasium this summer.

"It's been restored, and it looks fantastic," said Tony Sheets, Millard Sheets' son, himself a noted artist.

"What we agreed to is I'm gifting it to the city of Pasadena so that ultimately they have control of its whereabouts," he said.

"As it stands right now, it's on a 25-year loan to PCC. They have a terrific

The 1963 mural of the first Rose Parade that famed artist Millard Sheets painted for Home Savings has been restored and will be installed at Pasadena City College's Hutto-Patterson Gymnasium. (Courtesy photo)

The donation's value is being "worked on" by appraisers, Sheets said.

Sheets, who runs the nonprofit Millard Sheets Center for the Arts at Fairplex in Pomona, said his main concern had been finding a place in Pasadena where the mural could be installed in a single sweep. Anything else was a "deal-breaker," he said.

That's what derailed an earlier proposal to install the colorful mural at the Pasadena Convention Center, Sheets said: the mural would have had to be "broken up in pieces" to accommodate doors, among other problems, he said.

Joe Futtner, PCC's interim dean of visual arts and media studies, said the mural is a great addition to the campus.

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New home finally found for Millard Sheets' historic Rose Parade mural

MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF)- During heavy rain from tropical systems, or even severe thunderstorms, all the water can cause problems around a home.

Danny Isaac with restoration company A & I Fire and Water Restoration said he sees the aftermath of those problems regularly, and fortunately many of the problems could be avoided or reduced.

Homeowner Terry Dresser just repaired damage from one of the most common rain-related problems. Her gutters were leaking water into the framing of her roof.

"We found that some of the water was flowing backwards thereby getting under the shingles and causing the damage," she explained.

Gutter specialist Eddie McCreery with the Seamless Myrtle Beach company said there are usually two issues with gutters.

"You want to make sure they're pitched in the right direction so that they're draining properly that way," McCreery said. "You also want to make sure they're cleaned out of any debris that may cause them to back up and overflow."

There are two pretty easy ways to figure out if gutters are working properly, McCreery said. First, when it is raining, check out the spout and make sure there is water coming out of there. Second, look for any patches that are dirtier that the rest of the gutter. That will likely indicate where water is flowing over the gutter in that area. Homeowners can get up on a ladder and check for clogged gutters themselves, or they can hire a professional will likely check for a few more issues.

"We'll check the pitch, check the level on it, make sure the water's flowing like it's supposed to," McCreery said.

Lots of rain can also saturate the ground, so check for trees that may fall over. Isaac said debris can also clog ditches and drains. So watch for anything that could cause flooding in your yard.

"If you have an open ditch or even a stormwater culvert, make sure the debris doesn't have your drains covered up," Isaac said.

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Homeowners advised to check for rain-related problems