You can help the Historic Fourth Ward School Museum stay warm in the Winter and cool in the Summer!
Warmer Winters
& Cooler Summers at
the Museum
Care-Flow 2022
Fundraiser
So we can better serve the historic legacy and present-day community of the Comstock region, the Historic Fourth Ward School Museum of Virginia City, NV needs your help to acquire and install the following:
- 4 Ceiling Heaters
- 10 Ceiling Fans
- 2 Portable Air Conditioning
The Fourth Ward School was built with state-of-the-art heating and cooling systems in 1876.
Today, we aim to continue this legacy with climate-controlled rooms, allowing our rich programming to continue no matter what the weather brings.
Your contributions to our “Care Flow” 2022 End of Year Fundraiser can help:
- Extend the Museum’s season into colder months and re-open sooner in the spring
- Keep our staff warm, happy, and productive behind the scenes so they can keep creating wonderful exhibits & experiences for you
- Create an enjoyable visit to our museum for your family and other guests as a haven from the summer heat and winter chills
- Protect our historic building and its artifacts from the dangers of extreme temperatures
During this giving season, we thank you for all you do year-round to support the Historic Fourth Ward School Museum & Archives.
The Historic Fourth Ward School Foundation is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation formed and operating in the State of Nevada and registered with Nevada Secretary of State (Federal Tax ID# 88-0463462). Our purpose and mission is to connect people to the relevance and importance of the Comstock story through its authentic preservation, interpretive exhibits and programs, and archival resources. Your donation may be tax-deductible pursuant to the provisions of section 170© of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. § 170(c).
Warm Wishes from Nora Stefu, our Executive Director
Dear friends, members, and fans of the Museum,
When the Fourth Ward School was built in 1876, it was an innovative endeavor in almost every sense. Each student had their own desk, every floor had a drinking fountain and students had access to indoor plumbing.
These features may seem commonplace today, but in the 1870s, these were state-of-the-art compared with other schoolhouses in the West. The attendees of the Fourth Ward received the highest amenities available to ensure the best possible environment to learn and grow.
Today, we’re as busy as ever ensuring our visitors, members, staff, and volunteers experience the joy of learning and growing in a comfortable environment. Students of the Fourth Ward from 1877 to 1936 learned in the luxury of classrooms warmed by heating in the cold Comstock winters and cooled by the fresh air brought into the building by an intricate patent ventilation system.
Though technology has changed vastly since then, the chilling effect of a Virginia City winter and summer’s sweltering effects remain today. Thanks in part to the support of donors like you, we proudly installed 4 ceiling heaters on two levels, two split units, and a ceiling heater for the utility room this year. (These heaters are currently warming our appreciative staff as I write this letter to you!)
As a direct result of what our wonderful community helped to raise in our Warm Pipes campaign last year, we have been able to extend our season this year. We’re happy to welcome you to visit the Historic Fourth Ward School Museum on Fridays through Mondays through mid-December and feel the warming benefits of your contributions for yourself.
Based on the success and benefits of the initial heaters, it feels prudent to add 4 additional heaters to the second-floor corridor landing (where we host many of our special events) and on the third floor leading to the mansard roof. This will allow our maintenance staff and volunteers to continue their important work as dedicated stewards of our historic building in a safe and warm environment throughout the winter.
As the temperatures here in Virginia City have been flirting with freezing in recent weeks, it may be hard to remember the sweat-inducing effects of a 90-degree summer season. As you likely know, summer is our busiest season. We strive to ensure the comfort of our guests so their visit to the Museum can be a pleasantly memorable one. The installation of 10 ceiling fans and 2 portable air conditioning units will go a long way to provide cool programming and a pleasurable visit to the Fourth Ward School Museum during the summer season.
The importance of proper airflow and climate inside the building directly affects the quality and quantity of our guests’ visits to the Museum as well as the type of activities we can offer. By helping us expand the capacity for warming up our building in the winter and cooling our rooms in the summer, you’re helping us expand and enhance nearly every facet of what the Fourth Ward School Museum offers.
If you feel called to support our new “Care-Flow” End-of-Year Campaign, you may contribute by donating securely via PayPal using the donation button above this letter or by sending a check to:
“Care Flow” Fundraiser
Historic Fourth Ward School Museum & Archives
P.O. Box 4
Virginia City, NV 89440
Wishing you the warmest of holidays and the coolest new year yet,
Nora Stefu
Executive Director
Historic Fourth Ward School Museum & Archives