One hundred fifty-five years standing. The next hundred is the work in front of us.
A briefing for the membership on the 2026 building-stabilization project — funded by a Maryland Heritage Areas Authority grant, matched dollar-for-dollar by the Assembly Rooms. The deck is what we'll present at the annual meeting; the handout is a take-home that members can read at their own pace.
The Assembly Rooms was built in 1870–71 on land donated by Judge George Washington Dobbin as a place to heal a community divided by the Civil War. Designed by Washington architect Robert Stead, it is a contributing resource within the Lawyers Hill Historic District (National Register, 1993). All proposed work follows the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation and addresses the root cause of 155 years of moisture-driven decay — lifting timber out of soil contact, defining the foundation, and moving water away from the building.
Project team: Debra Roth (President · Project Manager), Dustin Thacker, Assoc. AIA (Volunteer Architect), Nessly Craig, Ph.D., Burnet Chalmers, and Wendy Ng. Contractors: Fitzgerald’s Heavy Timber Construction (Thurmont MD), JEM Electrical Co. (Woodbine MD).