John Barnhart
The Melvin T. Morgan teams working on Avenel

Dr. Paul Rhodes, a member of the Avenel Foundation board of directors, said that Foundation members recently noticed stains on the ceiling of an upstairs room. The stains indicated a roof leak and Dr. Rhodes, who also acts as Avenel’s de-facto grounds keeper, went up to the attic to take a look.

Going into Avenel’s attic is an interesting expedition. Access is via a narrow, very steep stairway off the back balcony. The stair risers are unusually high and the steps unusually narrow. The entry door to the attic is low and Dr. Rhodes has bonked his head on a couple of occasions going through it.

The roof was indeed leaking.

The next step was finding somebody to do the work. Avenel’s brochure refers to the home as “one of Bedford’s crown jewels.” The interior features heart-of-pine floors and a unique, complex system of internals stairways. The Avenel Foundation has spent a quarter-of-a century restoring and preserving the antebellum plantation house. It needed somebody who has experience working on very old homes.

The Foundation contacted five roofing contractors who assessed the work needed to be done and submitted complete bids.

“They were all thorough, very professional,” commented Dr. Rhodes.

The board reviewed each bid and set up charts in order to do side-by-side comparisons on details.

“They were all very, very similar,” Dr. Rhodes said.

The Foundation selected Melvin T. Morgan Roofing of Lynchburg. A crew began work last week.

Ronnine Caldwell, the Melvin T. Morgan branch manager, who is overseeing the work, said he has been with the company for 20 years and has worked on a number of historic buildings.

“It’s all original, yes sir,” he replied of the Avenel roof structure.

Caldwell said he’s amazed at the building’s character and the workmanship put into it.

“It’s got secret gutters up there,” he noted.

“You find out what the true meaning of wood is,” he said, describing working on an old building.

Caldwell said that safety for his work crew is critical, as is taking extra precautions when working on a building like Avenel. For example, the roof of the wrap-around porch has a metal roof and workers are getting to the building’s roof via a section of the porch roof that’s flat. This meant taking precautions to protect it. They’ve also taken precautions to protect the crown molding that greatly impresses Caldwell — the ladders are equipped so that they don’t rest against it.

Now, the Avenel Foundation must pay for the work and they’ve mailed out letters asking for gifts. They’ve set a goal of raising $20,000.

“We anticipate a very strong community response,” Dr. Rhodes said.

Gifts can be mailed to: The Avenel Foundation, P. O. Box 686, Bedford, Virginia, 24523. The Avenel Foundation is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit and gifts are tax deductible.

Avenel was built by William and Frances Burwell. According to Pat Rieley, a member of the board of directors, Robert E. Lee’s wife was Mrs. Burwell’s guest during the War Between the States. After the war, in 1867, General Lee, himself, was a guest there.

The house, today, hosts community events. It can accommodate 80 people at sit-down banquets, 300 for indoor receptions and 400 for indoor/outdoor receptions. The Foundation also holds fundraising events and the next one, Derby Day, is scheduled for May 1 at 5 p.m.