The Pump House was built in 1883 and is now part of the James River Park System. (Photo courtesy Penn Markham)
The revival of a favorite Richmond haunt is gaining steam with an infusion of federal financial support.
The Pump House, a Victorian Gothic building on the grounds of Byrd Park, was abandoned in 1924 after its waterworks technology grew obsolete. For nearly a century, it sat abandoned, until in 2017 the nonprofit Friends of Pump House took an interest in preserving the property. Now, $1 million in renovation funds are slated for the cause.
Half of the money was secured by Virginia Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine as part of the omnibus spending bill signed by President Joe Biden in December. The city of Richmond will use the $500,000 to “stabilize the Byrd Park Pump House, expand its capacity beyond the current limit of 25 and to preserve it for future generations,” according to a joint statement. The money is expected to be matched by private donations from Historic Richmond.
“It’s sort of a Sisyphean task to preserve an old building like this, but you’d be surprised how good of a shape some parts of the building are in,” says Penn Markham, president of Friends of Pump House. “We’re working on a study with Quinn Evans architects to figure out what needs to be done to spend the money wisely. For example, there’s no point fixing the floor if you haven’t fixed the roof first.”
Built in 1883, the Pump House was a municipal building with an industrial purpose, but it was also a gathering place. The second floor featured an open-air dance floor and a balcony.
In 1924, the building was closed, and it was eventually slated for demolition in the 1950s. Instead, it was sold to First Presbyterian Church for $1 in 1956; the property later reverted to the city and is now part of the James River Park System.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.
“It has a certain energy that makes you want to explore it and learn more,” Markham says. “I’ve always thought it was really beautiful and kind of mysterious. In this town, we’re lucky that we’ve saved a lot of our old buildings and there’s a lot of architecture to enjoy. I’ve lived in other places where that isn’t the case.”
There are a few annual events each year at the Pump House, including the Poe at the Pump House exhibition in October, in which an Edgar Allan Poe impersonator reads ghost stories. Right now, events such as weddings are technically allowed, but many potential event planners balk at the small capacity and the requirement that hard hats be worn indoors. Markham hopes this infusion of cash is the beginning of a full revitalization.
“This is the most serious renovation effort in the last 100 years,” he says. “A lot of people have talked about it, but nobody’s ponied up the money until now. It just might work — there are a lot of people in the community that want it to happen.”
