From Ellis Island to Illinois: Bradley’s Restoration Works prepares for historic project

BRADLEY – The restoration crew at Bradley’s Restoration Works Inc. had planned to painstakingly bring new life to hundreds of window panes – and all other parts of the window units – related to the Ellis Island project by now.

However, the process is excruciatingly thorough and, to date, the team Gail Wallace has assembled continues to plug away on other noteworthy projects, currently the windows and sashes from the old Illinois State Capitol building in Springfield.

While a sizable portion of the property remains in a holding pattern awaiting shipments of the historic cargo, there remains plenty of interest in the pending delivery.

On Thursday afternoon, several visitors connected with Landmarks Illinois, a Chicago-based not-for-profit group dedicated to the preservation of historic places, toured the site as excitement grows regarding the upcoming Ellis Island project.

The thought was the estimated two-year project would have started in 2023. It was then pushed back to September. Now, it likely will not begin until 2025.

Wallace, president of Restoration Works Inc., founded in 1982, just wants it to begin. The sooner the better. But she knows a project of this magnitude takes time. She is willing to wait – both anxious and nervous.

She explained to her Thursday visitors that the room they were gathered in will be filled with National Park Service-owned Ellis Island materials once the project gets underway.

WALLACE’S KNOWLEDGE ‘SIMPLY INCREDIBLE’

To date, the 34,000-square-foot location has one Ellis Island window and sash. The crew is using it as a test to determine the scope of onsite work and the best way to handle, disassemble and reassemble the historic property.

Restoration Works soon will be taking on the multi-million-dollar job of stripping and restoring more than 1,500 wood and steel sashes and doors from the Statue of Liberty National Monument site.

A leader in the world of wood and metal restoration of historic structures, Restoration Works, known for its wood-stripping process using their patented Light Wave Stripper, is part of the $100 million complete overhaul of the National Park Service-owned Ellis Island main property.

Bonnie McDonald, president and CEO of Landmarks Illinois, simply said after the tour that Wallace and her crew are models for what can be done to maintain architectural history.

“Her knowledge base is simply incredible,” McDonald said.

The gathering of preservationists marveled at the expansive shop and the technology used.

“She has incredible capacity” for restoration, McDonald said. “They have found a way to scale up for these significant projects in an efficient and a quality way.”

Like Wallace, McDonald is eager to see the Ellis Island product on hand. She is hopeful to return to the Bradley site as Restoration Works applies its expertise.

She said Restoration Works participating in the Ellis Island project is an achievement. She flatly said that Ellis Island is the “jewel in the crown” of the national park system.

Ellis Island, located in New York Harbor, was the United States entry point for an estimated 12 million southern and eastern European immigrants between 1892 and 1954.

The visitors to Wallace’s site noted it would be fair to state the majority of family trees in the U.S. have some connection to Ellis Island.

Amazingly, after more than 50 years of service, the property was basically abruptly abandoned by immigration officials. It was left to rodents, weather and the curious until it fell into such a state of disrepair there was consideration of demolishing the site.

However, a movement began in the 1990s, shortly after the massive refurbishing of the Statue of Liberty, to work to bring the Ellis Island property back to life.

Now known as the Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration, a movement was launched to restore the administration building and research center.

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