Heritage Museum looks to raise funds for historic Kellogg House roof repairs

The historic Kellogg House at the Heritage Museum of Orange County in Santa Ana, built in 1898, needs a new roof, museum officials say.

Saved from demolition for educational purposes in 1980,and moved from its original location at 122 Orange St. and Walnut Avenue to a then-empty lot at Fairview and West Harvard streets, the structure’s authentic wood-shingle roof at the time was only expected to hold up for about 25 years.

“The roof is the original roof since they moved it here, which is almost 40 years ago,” said Candace Chromy, executive director at the Heritage Museum. “We are lucky we have gotten 40 years out of it.”

Last winter Chromy and the rest of the Heritage Museum team noticed water damage inside the three-story Queen Anne Victorian home.

“After a lot of our really heavy rains, we had a problem with leakage in one of the bedrooms upstairs,” said Chromy.

Built by Hiram Clay Kellogg, a civil engineer and architect who was a key figure in establishing Orange County, the home has neoclassical elements indicative of the Queen Anne style that was most popular between 1880 and 1910. Kellogg’s love of tall wooden sailing ships can be found in elements throughout: an oval dining room meant to emulate an officer’s mess, built-in cabinets and shelves courtesy of a ship’s carpenter and an authentic 18th-century spruce mast from a decommissioned ship at the center of the spiral staircase are just some examples of Kellogg’s nautical flair.

The water damage is above what would have been Kellogg and his wife’s bedroom, and water has also been running down through the walls causing damage in the dining room. For now a tarp has been placed on the roof, one that isn’t visible from the front of the house. Chromy said it is a short-term solution.

The roof at the historic Kellogg House at the Heritage Museum of Orange County is in disrepair.

(Courtesy of the Heritage Museum of Orange County)

“We are concerned about the long-term damage if we don’t replace the roof soon; it will make it even worse when we do do it,” said Chromy. “We don’t want to have damage to the inside of the house as well. All of our ceilings are beautifully painted, some with hand-painted work of flowers and things, and it would be sad to lose that piece of it.”

The roof repairs would cost an estimated $45,000.

Educator Dr. Mary Nolan, who 45 years ago worked with the special services and enrichment activities department of the Santa Ana School District, spearheaded the relocation of the Kellogg House in order to create education opportunities for students in SASD, which didn’t have the funding for field trips. Federal grants paid for the move, and the house has since become the centerpiece of the Heritage Museum, which was founded in 1981 and opened to the public in 1985.

Over the years the Kellogg House has been outfitted in Victorian furniture and authentic antiques. Over the years, the museum also acquired the historic 1899 Maag Family Farmhouse and a blacksmith shop that is home to the O.C. Blacksmith Guild. Each year the museum hosts thousands for weddings, events and, of course, school field trips.

“Almost all of school tours go to the Kellogg House, and there are not a lot of places where kids can do hands on activities like they can here,” said Chromy.

The learning experiences at Kellogg House give students a chance to dress up in Victorian costumes and get a sampling of what a typical day was like in Orange County 125 years ago.

“People come back, and they remember they made butter or washed clothes on a washboard here as kids,” said Chromy. “It is nice to know we have a lasting impression on people.”

A fundraising campaign for the new roof is live at givebutter.com, and the Kellogg family has offered to match contributions up to $20,000. Chromy said the team hopes fundraising efforts will ensure the Kellogg House remains an educational tool for the community.

“We are more of a living history museum, not just a place where you go and look through cases. We don’t want to lose that. “