Zoar Bimeler House restoration in ‘home stretch’

The State Controlling Board has released $396,859 to put a new basement under the historic Bimeler House Museum, which has been closed to the public since it was damaged by a flood in 2005.

The Controlling Board approved $661,319 on Monday to the Ohio Historical Society, which owns the Bimeler House, to make repairs and maintain historical sites throughout the state.

We want to get the building on a firm foundation so there is no more damage to it, said George Kane, director of historic sites and facilities for the historical society.

Other projects being funded out of the $661,319 include replacement of the furnace at the Zoar Bakery and Dairy and repairs to the foundation and front porch of the Zoar Number One House.

The Bimeler House, built in 1868, sustained some of the worst damage during flooding that hit the village in January 2005.

Floodwaters caused part of the buildings foundation to cave in, which led to the cracks in the house that could be seen from the exterior. It no longer was safe to allow visitors inside the building. All the artifacts inside were removed.

During a second flood in the spring of 2008, the Bimeler House had 7 feet of water in its basement.

Kane estimated that it will cost about $750,000 to get the structure into a condition in which it once again can receive visitors. Grants and insurance will pay some of that cost, but the society still needs to raise about $225,000 to complete the restoration.

The society hopes to raise the rest of the money within a year, he said.

Because the building has been unheated for so many years, it needs extensive interior work, including fixing cracked plaster, redoing interior finishes, replacing the furnace and the electrical panel and eliminating mold.

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Zoar Bimeler House restoration in ‘home stretch’