The Medallion, Volume 49, Number 4, Fall 2011 Page: 13
15 p. : col. ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Preserving Sam
Rayburn's Legacy
Restored Cadillac Among Notab
Upgrades
at IH( Museum
By Carole Stanton, Sam Rayburn
House Museum Site Manager
Ongoing restoration work at the
Sam Rayburn House Museum near
Bonham will ensure its preservation
for the future and allow visitors to
experience the home as it appeared
when "Mr. Sam" last lived there 50
years ago. When the site reopens next
spring, visitors will also be able to enjoy
Rayburn's spruced-up 1947 Cadillac
in the site's recently rehabilitated
historic garage.
Constructed in 1916 by Rayburn,
the home is currently being restored
to improve its exterior condition and
enhance its historic interpretation.
Work is centered on repairing
and replacing wood siding, and
repairing windows and doors with
original materials.
In addition, the front of the
home and its back porch office will be
restored to their historic appearances.
The front porch will be decked with
wood planks and brick steps, based on
the original appearance. In addition,
the modern sidewalk from the street
will be replaced with cement pavers
as they appear in historic photos from
the mid-20th century. A separate new
sidewalk will curve in a gentle slope
from the visitors center
to the side of the porch.
Preservation
architects worked with
museum employees
and Texas Historical i"Site
records and
photographs,
plus analysis of
period paint,
wood, and
brick were
analyzed to find the appropriate
materials to maintain the historic
integrity of the house," says Donna
Williams, director of the THC's
Historic Sites Division. "One of the
factors in selecting the construction
firm was its knowledge and experience
with historic preservation work."
Last year, a gift from the Friends of
Sam Rayburn (matched by the THC)
funded a mechanical restoration of
Rayburn's 1947 Cadillac Fleetwood
by Canton, Texas-based Hatfield
Restorations. The car was a gift to
Rayburn after he lost his seat as
Speaker of the United States House of
Representatives in 1947. Along with
the job of Speaker of the House
came the use of a limousine, which
Rayburn relinquished to the new
Speaker, Joe Martin.Commission (THC) staff
to prepare plans for
the restoration project.Several Democratic
members of the House
offered to purchase a new
car for Rayburn, but he
refused. He feared that
such a large gift might make it appear
he was taking bribes; therefore, he
mandated that his fellow congressmen
could not spend more than $25 on a
gift for him. In an effort to comply
and yet sidestep Rayburn's rule, each
congressman donated $25. Checks
poured in from 142 house Democrats
(and a few Republicans, although
their money was returned with
many thanks), reaching a sum
of $3,550, enough to buy a new
Cadillac Fleetwood.
Rayburn knew his circa-1916
garage was not designed to hold a
vehicle as large as the new Cadillac,
so he phoned his handyman from
Washington, D.C., and asked him to
make an extension on the garage to
accommodate his new car. Rayburn did
not know the Cadillac's exact size,
so he estimated the dimensions.
"When he returned home,
he found that although his car fit
through the existing garage doors,
there were only a few inches to
spare on the sides and nothing
to spare in length," Williams
explains. "When parking the
Cadillac in the garage, there is
still no margin for error." *TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION
FALL 2011
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Texas Historical Commission. The Medallion, Volume 49, Number 4, Fall 2011, periodical, Autumn 2011; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth253479/m1/13/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Historical Commission.