Visitor's Center Preparation

POLEGREEN FOUNDATION MOVES HOUSE TO MAKE WAY FOR VISITOR’S CENTER:
Foundation continues plans to enhance historical site creating more visitor attractions
Hanover, VA – The Historic Polegreen Church Foundation conducted a house moving operation on a lot which it owns adjacent to the archeological site on Tuesday, August 7, 2007 at 10 a.m. Earlier this year the 17 year old Foundation held a ceremonial groundbreaking to kick-off efforts to enhance the current visitor park soon to contain a new informational kiosk, designated multi-car parking lot capable of handling tour or school bus traffic, directional soft-glo lighting of the silhouette structure, a granite timeline of religious freedom with flagpole in addition to enhanced walking trails and period fencing along Rural Point and Heatherwood roads. Construction for site enhancements is set for mid-September. The recent house moving efforts cleared land where a visitor’s center will be located. Carlton Abbott, the project’s current architect, will also design the center. Abbott’s work is widely recognized. He recently earned national awards for his design of the Archaearium at Jamestown Island.

Expert House Movers, who was hired for the move, holds the world record for moving the heaviest building ever moved on wheels, the Historic Gem Theatre in Detroit, MI. The building was five stories tall and weighed 2750 tons. Until breaking our own record in 1999 with the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, they held the record for the tallest masonry structure ever moved. How do they do it? They use an exclusive unified hydraulic jacking system. This system enables one man to control the entire jacking operation. The jacks are locked together by a unifying system and will raise and lower in unison regardless of individual jack loading. Each unified jack is on a separate hydraulic circuit and failure in one jack will not cause pressure loss in the other jacks. This system can accommodate from one to thirty-eight 100 ton rams in unison. This system is essential when making large, irregular lifts.

In 1990 the Historic Polegreen Church Foundation, under the leadership of Dr. Bob Bluford, began its work to preserve the site now marked by the well-known steel skeleton outlining the original dimensions of the meetinghouse. Due to the enthusiasm of the local residents as well as the state historical community, the mission of this non-profit has grown to interpret Davies and the dissenter’s role in the evolution of our 1st amendment religious and civil freedoms.

“Polegreen continues to shine the beacon of religious freedom and toleration. It is more than just a historic site or an exit off of 295 in Hanover County. Everyone should come, learn and see where the struggle for religious freedom and liberty began,” said Christopher Peace. Peace serves as the Foundation’s Executive Director.

house move photo