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Project:	KENMORE MEASURED DRAWINGS Fredericksburg, Virginia
Client:	Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) The Kenmore Association, Inc.
Media:	Ink on Mylar, 24"X36" format
Date:	1984

Kenmore was measured and drawn by a team of four architectural students as part of the HABS Summer Program. Madison R. Graham led the team and drafted eight sheets of the nineteen-sheet set. In addition to drafting four sheets of the set, Bess Althaus Graham also compiled the history of the site. The HABS process includes three steps: measurements recorded on sketched field drawings ("field notes"), pencil drafting on vellum drawings, and ink transfer onto mylar for the final set. This project is stored in the Library of Congress collection for use by the public. Kenmore is renowned for its elaborate plaster ceilings. Three of the ceilings were measured by the team while the museum remained open, using a system which projected points to the floor with a plumb bob. Measurements were then taken on the floor to establish the critical dimensions. For more information on the Historic American Buildings Survey project at Kenmore, see The Historic Kenmore Plantation and Gardens website.
The transverse section of Kenmore reveals the heavy timber framing of the half-hipped roof and the simple details of this Georgian-style house.

The elaborate plaster ceilings were measured by dropping a plumb bob from designated points on the ceiling. Scaled photographs were used to trace the fine detailing onto mylar drawings.

The eighteenth-century sunburst motif (above) was captured in the measured drawing of the ceiling using a pain-staking stipple technique on the final drawing.