Historic Restoration, Preservation, Reproductions and Repairs
Breathing New Life into Historic Homes for 25 years
Ornamental Plastering, Plaster Repair, Architectural Reproductions, Masonry Restoration and Repairs, Brick and Stone Re-Pointing All Phases of Historic Restoration, Preservation and Maintenance
Welcome to our website. Brandywine Historic Services and Specialty Restoration Inc. We are a small restoration company in business since 1983. We are based out of Southern Chester County Pennsylvania. We specialize in historic masonry and plaster restoration along with other specialized scopes of historic restoration and preservation like carpentry, window restoration, wood stripping, refinishing, repairs and most importantly, Maintenance. Maintaining your older home is the key to successful ownership. I can not stress enough how important maintenance is. It can save you a lot of headaches and money in the long run. We can set you up on our program that addresses the problems and then maintains the work on a timely schedule. Some of our interior work includes, Ornamental and Flat plastering. (Real Old School Lime Putty Plaster Repair)We also can make your exsisting plaster walls and ceilings look like new with a 2 coat veneer plaster. We also install plaster washers to firm up those loose areas. It can be applied directly over your existing plaster walls and ceilings and will bring the room back to life and solve any cracking problems. Don't let a contractor tell you that your plaster can't be repaired and wants to install drywall. Even loose plaster falling off the walls and ceilings can be re-attached and re-coated to look like new and you will retain the historic value. We are very proud of what we have accomplished on past and present projects for over 25 years. I hope you will find all your answers as you browse through the information provided on this site. I will be more than happy to respond to any questions you may have about this company and the services we provide. You can call Bill at (610) 812-0771 or email williamsmith@specialty-restoration.com
I welcome homeowners as well as small commercial building owners. I do not use sub-contractors. I own a travel trailer so If your not close to home I can stay in a near-by campground.
William L Smith Jr, DOH ( Doctor of Old Houses)
New Crown Molding and Capitals at Miller Chapel, Princeton University N.J. Eight different molds were made for this massive ornamental project
Handcrafted 100% plaster crown molding and expert installation as you can see
My mentor, Master Plasterer and Pennsylvania native, Joe Ball (right) setting the first of hundreds of pieces that made up the ornament at the Miller Chapel
First Class Historic Restoration
This beautiful early 1900's home in Metuchen, NJ has a very unique and ornate door surround that was in very poor condition. The homeowners had made a firm commitment to restore this back to its original condition. The plan was to save and restore as much of the area as possible and then to reproduce the remainder. Much of the wood was rotted and could not be salvaged. I was able to restore about 60% of the ornamental design that decorated it. The rest of the ornament had to be sculptured with clay and rubber molds were made before casting the pieces. There were about 20 rubber molds made in order to complete the ornament part of this project. As far as the wood goes, I had to replace all the rotted areas and strip about 20 to 25 coats of paint off the areas that were salvaged. The leaded glass side lights and transom lights were removed and restored. This is the focal point of the home and the homeowners obviously made the right decision.
