National Park Service awards helps refresh Wilson Bruce Evans home

OBERLIN — Changes are happening at 33 E. Vine St. this summer. Residents already may have heard the buzzing of saws and pounding of nails thanks to a $740,000 award from the National Park Service to continue work on the rehabilitation of the Wilson Bruce Evans Home Historical Society. The nonprofit previously received a grant from the NPS in 2022, as well as money from the state of Ohio, including the Ohio History Fund; the Nord Family Foundation, the Nordson Corporation Foundation, the Bill Long Foundation, and many members and private donors, which allowed them to begin work on the project. "What a gift," said Carol Lasser, professor emeritus of history at Oberlin College, who serves as the executive director of the Wilson Bruce Evans Home Historical Society. "We are thrilled. The NPS funds are limited, so we were not expecting this." The historical society applied for the grant more than six months ago. "This award really allows us to do this rehabilitation," Lasser said. Built before the Civil War, the Evans HHS honors the legacy of Wilson Bruce Evans (1824-1898), Sarah Jane Leary Evans (1829-1898) and their descendants and has a connection to the Underground Railroad and the long struggle for racial equality. "There are lots of ways it connects to important pieces of African American history," Lasser said. The historical society is finishing up stage one of the project by taking off the porch that was added in 1927 and making repairs outside the house, such as completing reconstruction of the 1880s porch. This latest grant will allow for the rehabilitation of the rear wing as well as foundation and facade work. "The rear wing will be rehabilitated to serve our education wing, where we will have classes, films and exhibits," Lasser said. "The historic rooms will remain intact with some technological upgrade to help tell the story of the house." Additionally, an ADA-compliant entryway and restroom will be added. Even with the most recent funding, the project will need money to move on to the third phase, which will be an outdoor interpretive campus. "The house is about more than the Oberlin-Wellington rescue and its ties to the Underground Railroad," Lasser said. "It's about the long struggle for racial justice in the neighborhood, community and country. We will use the landscape, signage and amenities to tell this amazing story of the Black struggle, resistance and resilience." Lasser admits the historical society and its board have "big dreams" for phase three. "We want to have a play area with a Henry Box Brown box and a picnic pavilion that can be used as a stage with the natural amphitheater in the back of the house. We hope to have solar panels on the roof of the pavilion as well." The board is heavily planning for the third phase, she said. "I love this project," Lasser said. "It is such a joy to see it coming together. We don't often have the exhilaration of seeing something so important being put together." When the Evans House opens to the public, it will hopefully draw visitors from all over in conjunction with other current and future local sites, Lasser said. "Oberlin will become the preeminent destination for Black heritage tourism in our region," she said. "Telling the fuller story of American history will benefit all of us." The most recent award is part of the NPS Historic Preservation Fund's African-American Civil Rights grant program, which focuses on the preservation of sites and stories directly associated with the struggle of African Americans to gain equal rights. This year, the National Park Service awarded $23.4 million to 39 projects in 16 states and the District of Columbia. For more information on the Evans House project, visit evanshhs.org. Contact Christina Jolliffe at ctnews@chroniclet.com.