Traditional Masonry Archives

Help Wanted: Masons Skilled in Historic Preservation
According to the International Masonry Institute, the restoration industry has sustained growth for more than 30 years. The demand for highly skilled craftworkers in the masonry restoration trades has never been greater.

In a perfect world, the principle of supply and demand works perfectly, with the proper amount of supply available to handle the current demand. Such is not the case with the historic preservation industry. When it comes to historic properties, the demand for tradespeople skilled in restoration and maintenance far outweighs the supply.

These students are learning to mix lime putty mortar using traditional methods.

The restoration industry has demonstrated sustained growth for more than 30 years, according to Larry Darling, director of education and professional development for the International Masonry Institute. "The demand for highly skilled craftworkers in the masonry restoration trades has never been greater," he says, "and this demand continues to grow each year despite fluctuations in other construction markets such as steel and wood."

And the need is across the board. "This activity is not confined to public work; investors and private institutions are finding tremendous benefit in the restoration of existing buildings and in developing regularly scheduled condition assessments and maintenance programs," Darling explains.

Special skills are needed
One of the reasons for the shortage is two-fold: Individuals trained as commercial masons are also very much in demand, and if any wanted to do historic maintenance or restoration work, they'd need additional training.

Because techniques and materials used in new masonry work are not comparable to those used in the past, historic masonry work requires special training and understanding, says John Speweik, a historic masonry specialist with U.S. Heritage Group. "Understanding this is part of the training. Proper handling and caring for the materials, and knowing that what you are working with may be 'one of a kind,' are both very important."

Another vital skill is the ability to maintain the character and integrity of the building.

"You can't change history; you have to follow history," observes Jimmy Price, principal of Price Masonry Contractors and Virginia Lime Works. You need investigative skills on the job, he says. "You have to be a bit of a forensic mason. You may have to look for hidden original work for details, such as joint profiles, bond patterns and color washes."

The mason skilled in preservation techniques must also have the knowledge to do no harm. Grind out a little too much mortar or damage a brick and you can't go back. "Even if you use the correct materials, if you do a bad job you change the aesthetics of the work, and in the future your work may be misinterpreted," Price cautions.

Thomas McGrath, superintendent of the National Park Service's Historic Preservation Training Center, points out that that skilled preservation masons are sensitive to an earlier mason's style and technique — matching materials and style, but not under- or over-crafting it. "There's a willingness to hide your own hand, to be seamless, so your repairs don't diminish the building's character," he explains. This delicate touch comes from understanding history, stylistic techniques and traditions, and the materials of the day.

When it comes to the maintenance of historic buildings, the "better to repair than replace" philosophy is admirable, but it comes with a caution, says Price. "It's so easy to completely alter the looks, and use of the wrong materials can destroy the integrity of a building. Often it's better to do nothing than do the wrong thing."

Turning the perception around

It's unfortunate, but trade occupations don't get much respect in this country nowadays.

"Trades are not an honorable profession these days and masonry is probably low on the pecking order because it's hard work," observes Chris Robinson, supervisory exhibits specialist at the Historic Preservation Training Center.

Lisa Sasser, president of the Preservation Trades Network, agrees. "The trades are not valued as much in our society. Parents and grandparents who worked in the trades want their kids to go to college."

And, indeed, the main emphasis these days is to fast-track kids into college and technology-related fields. Vocational and technical education funding has been cut across the country, despite a pressing need.

"The schools have drifted away from hands-on training. Today it's more academic. We're trying to get back to more hands-on," says Mark Watson, a teacher at Brooklyn High School of the Arts in New York City.

Brooklyn High School of the Arts was the first high school in the United States to offer a major in historic preservation when it began about six years ago. It teaches all the trades, and students audition to come into the program as eighth graders. "We have a materials and construction focus, plus history, because you can't have one without the other," Watson says.

"These are jobs you cannot outsource," he says, adding that in New York City alone there's enough work to keep people busy for years. It's a matter of getting the word out to students, he says. When they hear him mention six-figure salaries, students' ears perk up, "especially when they find out they can make more than the architect."

Another training school is launching in Savannah, Ga. Lucy Phillip, executive director of college and high school projects for the Department of Technical and Adult Education, reports their Historic Preservation Academy will start this fall with a small group of 25 high school freshman. Another 25 to 50 freshmen will be added each year to a maximum of 150 students. Masonry is one of the specialty areas that will be offered (along with ironwork and painting).

"We're offering students a career track they may not have considered," Phillip says. At completion, students will have a high school diploma and a certificate in a field of construction and historic preservation, plus college credits. From there a student can choose to go on to college, choose a skilled trade job, or do both.

Training, standards and outreach are needed
Talk to just about anyone in the preservation field and you'll discover unanimous agreement on the necessity of having skilled restoration masons on the job. You'll also find almost universal agreement that there should be qualification standards for all restoration work.

McGrath reports there are only a handful of skills-development programs and even fewer formalized programs scattered across the country. And, while many workshops are offered, development of necessary skills really requires a lengthier program.

However, a growing number of companies and organizations offer on-the-job training for masons involved with historic preservation. U.S. Heritage Group's on-site trainings involve everything from tool selection to replicating the original joint profiles to mortar finishes. The company tests contractors at the end of training and issues a certificate to each mason who meets the workmanship standards specific to that job.

Virginia Lime Works and Pennsylvania Lime Works also offer job site training. The International Masonry Institute (IMI) has mobile units around the country that can deploy to a job site and teach the skills needed for that particular job, says IMI's Larry Darling, adding that on-the-job training is extremely effective and growing in popularity.

Two things appear to be lacking in the industry that could help both on the educational front and the supply side: An industry-wide, centralized listing of educational opportunities, including workshops, seminars, conferences, and certificate and degree programs; and a database or registry that could be used to match qualified masons with the people who need the skilled work.

However, there is one problem with a potential registry, Sasser says. "If people just submit their names, how do you know how skilled they are?"

Some in the field think qualifying standards should go beyond the basic skills. "There should indeed be qualification standards for all restoration work," Darling says, "not just in the masonry materials and methods but including areas such as safely erecting and using scaffolding, working with hazardous materials, and protecting the public health and safety — all of which IMI training focuses on."

Sasser and others also believe it is important to educate architects, engineers, federal and state agencies and others who are responsible for the preservation and upkeep of historic buildings. The PTN presents symposiums and seminars directed to this audience.

Robinson reports that more and more engineers and architects are doing a better job of understanding the qualities of historic materials, but the information doesn't always reach the mason. Again, it is a case of needed education.

Also, when working on preservation projects, McGrath emphasizes the importance of documenting the work. "Either photographically or with date stamps, you need to leave footprints for future generations, so they know where restorations took place."

Masonry contractors learn the ropes of building a dry stone wall at a workshop led by stone masons Alan Ash of Eugene, Ore., and Dave Goulder of Scotland.

Some point to Europe for models of how to proceed here in the U.S. Many European nations are way ahead of us with regard to restoration and preservation trades, and they place great value on skilled tradesmen. But their cities and buildings are much older than ours. For all intents and purposes, restoration is still a new concept for us. Public awareness of the need is growing slowly as the demand for such services advances in leaps and bounds.

For masons interested in pursuing restoration work, learning and honing of skills is paramount, but the business value is there and the opportunities almost endless. "Saving national treasures" is one way to describe preservation work, says Price, who has worked on projects such as Poplar Forest, Thomas Jefferson's retreat in Virginia, and the reconstruction of the historic Brick Chapel in St. Mary's City, Md., built around 1667. It's a quality-versus-quantity profession, he says — and personally rewarding, too.

TM