On 29 Oct 2015, the Montclair Community Library in Prince William County held a ribbon cutting ceremony.  The community has waited for this library to be completed since the early 1990s!  Following is a picture of the new library.

Montclair Public Library Ribbon Cutting Ceremony – 29 Oct 2015

In addition to the new library, the county is restoring an African-American home built in the late 1700s.  The home was originally owned by the slave master.  Eppa Barnes and Amanda Lambert Barnes, ex-slaves, purchased the home from the slave master’s heirs after the Civil War and emancipation, and ultimately raised 12 children in the home!   Over the years, the owners made improvements to the home.  The Barnes family and descendants lived in the home until the 1960s.  Following are pictures of the home in 2014 prior to the restoration effort.

Original Barnes home before movement or restoration – Image may be subject to copyright.

Movement of the property from SR 234 to Montclair Library location. Images may be subject to copyright.

The Barnes home at the new library location. Images may be subject to copyright.

I periodically visited the site of the new library and the Barnes home to check on the status of the build and restoration.  At one point, it didn’t look like much things were on schedule, but the ceremony occurred as scheduled on 29 Oct 2015.  Following is a picture of the Barnes home today.

Front view of Barnes home

Side angle view of Barnes home.

There’s still a lot of work to be done on the inside, but I was really impressed with the county’s efforts to preserve as much of the original home as possible.  Following are some photos of the inside.

View of the ceiling and adjacent wall.

There is a stairway to two upstairs bedrooms.  It’s hard to tell there is an upstairs living area from outside the home.  We were not allowed to go upstairs, I assume for safety reasons.

View of the upstairs – Barnes family home.

I will do another post when the home is completely restored.  This is so exciting!!

Between The Dashes