(Mark) Twain, (Edith) Wharton (historic) homes join others in financial peril (foreclosure)

[UpInArms]

Source: Associated Press

HARTFORD, Conn. - Mark Twain, Edith Wharton and other boldfaced names among the dead have something in common with living Americans in these hard financial times:

Their homes are in jeopardy.

For scores of historic house museums, simply keeping the lights on has become a challenge. The Mount, Wharton's home in Lenox, Mass., is trying to stave off foreclosure with a feverish fundraising campaign. The Twain House in Hartford can't even afford to buy energy-saving light bulbs that would slash its electric bill.

Experts say this summer may make or break some sites, many of which already have cut their hours and staff and are struggling for donations in today's troubled economy.

"The jury's really still out on how summer visitation will be, how people will respond to gas prices and what it will mean for us," said Susan Wissler, acting president of The Mount, which needs $6 million by Oct. 31 to avoid foreclosure.

The Twain House and Museum is in similar straits, trying to repay a $4.9 million bank loan from earlier expansions and meet its $2.9 million yearly budget.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080616/ap_on_bi_ge/uneasy_economy_historic_homesites

[leftchick]

1. I saw Edith's Home 20 years ago when it was in total disrepair

They have done a fantastic job of restoring it. I hope they do not have to foreclose.




http://www.edithwharton.org/


The Mount was Edith Wharton's "first real home."

Wharton designed and built The Mount in 1902, based on the principles outlined in her influential book, The Decoration of Houses (1897), co-authored with architect Ogden Codman, Jr. This classical revival house represents the only full expression we have of Wharton's architectural interests.

The Mount is the only U.S. monument to Edith Wharton.

It is also one of the mere 5% of National Historic Landmarks dedicated to women.

Purchase the definitive history of The Mount online at The Bookstore at The Mount.

[KamaAina]

2. The Twain House is, or was in my day, practically a mandatory field trip

for all Connecticut students, even those like myself from (relatively) far-off Fairfield County. Is that not enough of a revenue stream to keep them going? Or have the fickle field-trippers moved on to, say, the Wadsworth Atheneum, the first public art museum in the land?

[Carnea]

4. took the same trip (from Fairfield county)

Unless they added water slides since I was last there how the fuck do they have a 2.9 million dollar a year budget???

[wryter2000]

8. Mark Twain also lived in Fairfield County

He had a house in Redding, where I lived when I was a teen. The house burned down after his death, I believe, and was rebuilt as a private home. My mother was allowed to photograph the gardens for one of her books.

Some of his books were donated to the town and used to found the Mark Twain Library.

[JerseygirlCT]

14. That's actually not very big for a non-profit of this type.

All those programs and buildings can be expensive to maintain.

But it's not the operational budget that's the problem, from what I've been reading and hearing. It's the debt from the building loans that are sucking them under.

You can raise 3 million from corporate, foundation and individual sources in a year - that's not a stretch. But add a big bill to the bank(s) - even after the big loans have been restructured, and suddenly you're looking at serious deficits.

[MassLiberal]

6. they built a fancy visitors' center several years ago

It put the museum into the hole.

Same kind of thing happened with Wharton's house -- they decided to spring for a large collection of books from her private library a couple of years ago, and they really couldn't afford it.

[JerseygirlCT]

13. Exactly. nt

[JerseygirlCT]

12. That's not a big revenue stream, I'd guess.

The problem apparently is big, big loans for all the capital improvements. And bad management (that person has since moved on to another lucrative spot, from what I'm told). It sucks for most of the staff - the staff is a shadow now of what it was. But the problem is that it starts a downward spiral: bad financial situation means the people with the means to support the place are thinking twice about sending money. The Twain house had been one of the places in Hartford with a pretty impressive list of donors. I'm guessing that's eroded, and eroding now - though I don't know.

[Pale Blue Dot]

3. I teach at a school within walking distance of the Twain house.

Frankly, I'm more concerned about the financial situation of my students and their families, but historic sites like these have to be high on the list of priorities (IMHO).

[Tansy_Gold]

5. I remember visiting the Twain house in Hannibal, MO many

many years ago.

And I agree: when living people are being evicted from their homes, it's a bit difficult to feel too much pain for the museums made from the homes of the long departed.

But it just seems to me that there are CERTAIN PEOPLE in this country who could EASILY solve these problems -- Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, some of these fired CEOs, some of the still-working CEOs. There's no fucking excuse for someone to have billions and billions, while the culture of the country rots.


Tansy Gold

[bean fidhleir]

10. "CERTAIN PEOPLE"

Perhaps if trustees had to *personally* guarantee loans for any work apart from actual maintenance, and by law all maintenance had to be on a strictly non-profit basis....

[lutherj]

7. I question the wisdom of paying for expansions with mortgages in

the first place. Seems like this should be done with donations to begin with.

[bean fidhleir]

9. Yes, taking out a mortgage was Bad Management - hubris. (nt)

[JerseygirlCT]

15. It's basically a gamble with future donations

But it should be done with more backing that guess. It seems they (they being top management and the board) did not do their due diligence.

[JerseygirlCT]

11. The Twain house is in that shape because of terrible management

That's sad, but it's the truth.

They'd been undergoing a huge capital campaign to fund new building. They decided to do a bigger project than they had raised money for, and they took out many loans to accomplish it. Even with those loans restructured, their operational fundraising apparently hasn't kept pace with the needs of the new buildings. They've been laying off staff, but this kind of news certainly doesn't attract the donors they're going to need to make it work.

The talk now is about a merger with the Harriet Beecher Stowe house next store. The Stowe place has a very large endowment, and could afford to absorb the Twain house, apparently. It makes some sense.

It's a real shame - because it really is an important landmark.