AMHERST — Amherst’s historic Civil War marble plaques, on temporary display at the Bangs Community Center since last summer, should have a permanent home in the renovated and expanded Jones Library.
As designs by Finegold Alexander Architects of Boston for the $36.3 million project continue to be refined, a 545-square-foot room on the lower level is being set aside as the location for the tablets given to Amherst by the Grand Army of the Republic in 1893. The library project is expected to get underway next year.
The plaques have the names of 300 town residents who fought on the Union side and prominently feature African American residents who were members of the famed 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Regiment and 5th Cavalry, some of whom were in Galveston, Texas, to announce the end of slavery in June 1865, a date now recognized with the federal Juneteenth holiday.
At a Jones Library Design Subcommittee meeting in June, Finegold architects Ellen Anselone and Josephine Penta showed plans with a room for the plaques near a back entrance to the building, where the main community meeting room will be located and next to a 578-square-foot room for special collections exhibits.
Deborah Bridges, the docent for the current display of the Civil War plaques, told the committee that this appears to be a good plan. “The proposed space looks great, in my opinion,” Bridges said.
She is the daughter of the late Dudley Bridges Sr., who was committed to getting the plaques back on public display after the town put them into storage in the 1990s.
Amilcar Shabazz, who serves on a committee focused on the future of the tablets, said the objective has been to give them a place of prominence that is also accessible and safe.
Unlike the painting of an English nobleman that once graced the main entrance of the building, the plaques will be a great representation of the town and its history, said resident Gary Tartakov.
The proposed room appears to have enough wall space for the five main plaques, each measuring 56 x 75 inches and weighing between 600 and 800 pounds, along with a smaller, dedication plaque.
The question is how they will be displayed. Ben Breger, a town planner, said his preference is that they be hung on the wall. This will allow other exhibits associated with the plaques to be put into the room.
Anselone, a principal for Finegold Alexander, said that footings may need to be added to support the bearing walls to accommodate the weight of the plaques.
Assistant Town Manager David Ziomek said he appreciates that as people come into the building, or descend the main staircase, the tablets will be one of the first things they see. He said the town intends to work with a designer and a curator to create the new permanent display.
The space for the plaques, and the special collections exhibit, will be open even when the library is not, such as when community events are being held, is an exciting opportunity, said Library Director Sharon Sharry.
