Designed by Horace Trumbauer in 1891 for a wealthy brewer’s country estate, the Four Mills Barn has been the Wissahickon Trails headquarters for close to 50 years. Changes in the Wissahickon Creek over the last 150 years have affected the flood plain and have forced change to everything in its path. The barn is one of those things now in its way. A recent rehabilitation campaign was completed to adapt the barn to the new realities of the Wissahickon. This project expanded the headquarters for Wissahickon Trails and has made the building itself a tool to teach about how to cope with changes in climate. It has allowed this historic barn to remain in use despite environmental changes that may have otherwise rendered it obsolete. Join architect and conservator Kate Cowing and Wissahickon Trails staff member Michaelle Fleisher on a tour to learn about the barn’s history and the creative solutions used to mitigate the environmental challenges that will help preserve the building for years to come.
Kate is both an architectural conservator and a registered architect with more than 25 years of experience in preservation architecture and has been honored with the title, “Association for Preservation Technology – Recognized Professional.” Kate is the principal of Kate Cowing Architect, LLC (wbe) located in Philadelphia. Her projects currently include important Philadelphia heritage buildings such as the Please Touch Museum, Byberry Friends Meeting Complex, St James the Less Church, and Zion Baptist Church. She recently presented the Wissahickon Trails Project at the Association for Preservation Technology annual conference in Montreal.
Michaelle has been Wissahickon Trails’ Finance & Human Resources Director for the past 8 years. She brought over 35 years of corporate experience in Finance, Accounting, Supply Chain, Operations and Human Resources management to Wissahickon Trails. She was the staff project manager for the full renovation of the Wissahickon Trails’ headquarters building to create an updated and flood-resilient office and community space. Michaelle is also involved in the local community, having served on the Ambler Area Y Board and currently as the treasurer of the Wissahickon Valley Public Library Board.
