Committee to oversee restoration of Harper’s Cabin

by Philip A. Janquart
 The Snake River Heritage Center and Museum and Weiser Architectural Preservation Committee (WAPC), Inc. recently joined forces to put together a steering committee charged with overseeing a historical restoration of the Harper Cabin.
 The small cabin, located on the south side of the museum at Hooker Hall, was built by the Harper family in the 1880s and was owned by the family through the 1960s.
Recently, a Harper family descendant contacted museum volunteer Dottie Emert, offering a small endowment to complete the restoration. Emert presented her proposal for the committee to the WAPC board at an early August 2021 meeting.
 “The committee is now together,” Emert told the Weiser Signal American. “We have received a donation of $4,000 and we are seeking a matching grant for that.”
 The committee is seeking the grant from the Idaho Heritage Trust.
 The Harper cabin is an important piece of Weiser history, according to WAPC President Tony Edmondson.
 “The way it was represented to me is that it is the oldest remaining building in Weiser, if not Washington County,” he said. “It’s also my understanding that it was originally located out on Park St. or Weiser River Road, somewhere on that end of town. Then some time before the library was built, it was moved to that location. When they built the library, it was moved to a location near the Vendome because that’s where the Washington County Museum was located. Then we made arrangements to have it moved up next to Hooker Hall and that’s where it’s been ever since.”
 That was about 20 years ago.
 The committee recently developed a rough list of work that needs to be done.
 Some of those items include the following:
 • Recreate the historical period with a working date of 1900, styling the cabin as the Harpers would have lived in it rather than a general recreation of the time period.
 • Collect information on the lives of the families that occupied the cabin, and the dates they lived there; collect historical pictures of the cabin taken throughout the years; and cite with accuracy the number of times the cabin has been moved, with dates and locations.
 There are also four specific aspects of the restoration that need to be addressed, according to committee notes:
 • Structural integrity, which will depend on a report by a hired engineer with the Idaho Heritage Trust.
 “This will tell us about any issues with the roof, foundation, and exterior walls,” the committee noted. “We can then plan on the outside help we will need to meet the suggested improvements.”
 • Interior fidelity, including floor, wall, and ceiling coverings.
 • Exterior fidelity, including size and type of windows, type of door on both front and back, as well as other exterior items mentioned in the family history.
 • Artifacts, which would include finding items mentioned by family members, and others that match the time period.
 • Security, which would involve measures to secure the cabin once it is restored.
 “The restoration must fall within the parameters of our ability to secure it,” the committee’s notes indicate.
 Committee members said the restoration process must be taken in steps and are seeking additional volunteers with varying expertise and skills to help the project along.
 It has been determined that two, 6-over-6 vintage wood frame glass replacement windows, roughly 35x55 inches, are needed for the front.
 There has also been discussion about replacing both of the cabin’s doors, the front appearing to be a slat Dutch door.
 “We would like to replace it with one that looks the part,” committee notes indicate. “However, it still needs to be secure, so we discussed having someone build a new door out of old wood (or skinning it in old wood) so it looks correct, but is strong enough to keep the cabin secure. The same thing would have to be done with the back door, since we can use it as a maintenance entrance.
 “We are looking for volunteers to make the doors when the time comes. We also found some of the old shutters. We only have one and a half and they’re in rough shape, so we would need someone to restore and replace those as well.”
 For more information or to volunteer, contact Dottie Emert at (208) 549-1673.