Coopersville Area Historic Society Receives Grant Award

The Coopersville Area Historical Society was chosen as the 2000 recipient of the Evans Memorial grant which was initiated by the Michigan Architectural Foundation and the Clannad Foundation.

The award is given annually to a Michigan non profit organization for a preservation project that demonstrates the use of creative solutions for problems in the restoration of a historic artifact or property. The grant to the Historical Society of $5,000 is for the first phase of interior restoration of Car #8 (Merlin). This will involve refinishing of the rare interurban train car's interior walls and floor. Specially milled panels, trim and other pieces need to be recreated.

Original design plans no longer exist for Car #8's line, an electric railway which came through Coopersville as it traveled between Grand Rapids and the lakeshore from 1902-28. Therefore, much study and investigative work were necessary to prepare for the project. Phases of exterior restoration have taken place throughout the years since the Historical Society acquired the car in 1990. Its transformation was featured in an August 6, 1998 Grand Rapids Press article by Pat Shellenbarger.

The Evans Memorial Grant for historic preservation is presented annually in memory of architect David Evans, founding partner of Quinn Evans Associates of Ann Arbor. Mr. Evans was a leading advocate for innovative historic preservation. His firm worked on many high profile historic buildings throughout the United States.

 

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