An Evaluation of Historic Cement Stucco Using Conditions Assessment Methodology and Digital Visualization Tools, Grand Teton National Park, USA

The John Moulton homestead, constructed in 1938, is one of four intact homesteads in the Mormon Row Historic District within Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. The homestead is a vernacular, two story wood frame structure finished with pink-painted cementitious stucco. The National Park Service (NPS) has passively preserved the structure since 1990 and it still maintains a high degree of integrity. The John Moulton Homestead is a popular tourist attraction for its accessibility and its unique paint color. At the present, however, the stucco exhibits severe cracking due to a number of causes, including a lack of designed expansion joints, poor installation, and uneven settlement, and an assumption is that it may pose a safety hazard if left untreated. The NPS would like to open the site to visitation while preserving the integrity of the structure and the stucco with minimal intervention. This paper focuses on the process of evaluating the condition of the historic cement stucco by using a combination of traditional recording methodologies augmented with digital analytical mapping tools to better understand the extent of deterioration. Based on the complexity of the cracking patterns evident on the stucco, digital tools including geographic information system software (GIS), infrared thermography (IR), and Structure from Motion (SfM) photogrammetry were selected to aid in visualizing the possible extent of unseen deterioration with minimally invasive techniques. In the process of analyzing deterioration conditions at the John Moulton Homestead, this project presents the opportunity to test the degree to which these tools can clarify and better illustrate conditions beyond traditional conditions documentation and thus inform treatments to be implemented.

Author dc:creator

• Stratte, Sara Jane

Repository record dc:identifier.uri

https://repository.upenn.edu/handle/20.500.14332/37199

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.upenn.edu:20.500.14332/37199