An Engineered Construction employee investigates the main staircase at the Hedberg residence during the selective-removal phase in the days following the fire. Photos courtesy of Engineered Construction Inc.

Engineered Construction
sifts through the ashes

A piece of Madison history went up in flames on Jan. 29, 2004.

On Jan. 30, 2004, Engineered Construction Inc. started putting history back together again. It hasn't been easy.

The attic fire at the Hedberg residence in Maple Bluff grew into the largest house fire in Dane County history, at least partially destroying the 8,000-square-foot, 1917 home designed by Madison architect Frank Riley, who also designed the governor's mansion two doors away.

"We started with emergency work for the house and making sure we could save what was left," said William J. Jackson, Engineered Construction's director of marketing.

The Hedberg residence reconstruction is well on its way to a June completion. Photos courtesy of Engineered Construction Inc.

There wasn't a whole lot that could be saved. The ceiling on the second floor had collapsed, and a portion of the second-floor ceiling had fallen all the way to the first floor. The roof was trashed, the basement was flooded with 4 feet of water, and, to make matters worse, the house was encrusted with ice, thanks to freezing temperatures the night of the fire.

On the bright side, many of the walls still stood, and the main staircase was salvageable.

"We had to secure the site to prevent further damage, winterize it, put up a temporary roof and pump dry heat in," Jackson said. "Once it started drying, the place basically fell apart."

Engineered didn't waste much time worrying about what couldn't be saved. The construction team, three days after the fire, began a portfolio on the structure through a discovery phase that included research on the residence at the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Engineered also began its selective-removal work in an attempt to save as many material samples as possible for matching during reconstruction.

"When you're doing the demolition, you go into the room and get floor, trim, paint and wallpaper samples," said Woody Knox, Engineered Construction's project manager. "It was a six-month process. We worked from the second floor down."

Matching the various historic materials took the company on a worldwide search for wood, wallpaper and electrical fixtures, to name a few.

"No three doors in the home are alike," Knox said. "It's a very challenging historical restoration. There are more than 125 doors in the place. A lot of windows. A lot of hardware."

It was a lot of hard work, but Engineered has hit the home stretch. With about 85 percent of the restoration complete, the contractor is focusing on finishing work for the final two months of the job.

"In every aspect, from the ceiling to the tile, it was as untraditional and detailed a project as we've ever seen," Jackson said. "For us, it'll put us on the map for a long time."

- Chris Thompson