Storied Historic Homes Suddenly In Dire Straits
Twain, Wharton Sites at Risk of Foreclosure
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Saturday, June 28, 2008
HARTFORD, Conn. -- Mark Twain, Edith Wharton and other famous dead people have something in common with many living Americans: Their homes are in jeopardy.
For historic house museums, remaining open 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 cannot even afford energy-saving light bulbs that would slash its electric bill.
Experts say this summer may make or break some sites, many of which have cut hours and staff and are struggling for donations.
"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 loan from earlier expansions and meet its $2.9 million yearly budget.
They cut two-thirds of the staff and made other reductions but had barely enough money to pay three weeks' worth of bills before recent publicity generated a spate of donations.
Many house museums, especially smaller sites, get little or no government help. Tourist dollars, donations, interest earned on endowment funds and corporate gifts -- all highly dependent on the economy -- help keep the doors open.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation estimates there are 9,000 to 10,000 historic home museums nationwide.
Some, like the Twain and Wharton homes, are established landmarks run by nonprofit groups. Thousands of others are homesteads of early settlers, birthplaces of noteworthy Americans or other modest sites run by historical societies and volunteers.
"Many of them are operating on a shoestring," said Richard Moe, president of the National Trust. "But they're very important to their communities and people put in a lot of volunteer time and effort just to keep them going.
"It's a complex financial situation out there for a lot of museums," he said, "and there's no question that house museums are facing some unique challenges these days."
Even government ownership isn't a guarantee of security. As states and municipalities cut their budgets, many have reduced the hours at the homes they operate or turned the sites over to private groups.
