Hurricane Destruction Revives Ancient Traditions of Master Craftsmen

By Mark Hoerrner

Opal…Dennis…Hugo…Katrina. These are not your local bridge club, but names of some of the most infamous hurricanes to strike the southeast in recent years. These destructive forces of nature have laid low some of the South’s most historic cities including New Orleans, LA, and Charleston, SC. But as is often the case, in times of great distress comes a positive result, a shining gem amidst the wreckage and debris. So enters the American College of the Building Arts (www.buildingartscollege.us) .

Now, on the historic grounds of McLeod Plantation on James Island in South Carolina, located just outside of Charleston, the ACBA is looking to build a permanent campus. The college’s philosophy is that of hands-on learning in order to teach traditional building skills—artistic metalwork, carpentry, plasterwork and more—all with the goal of using traditional techniques in order to restore historic buildings. These skills have been on the decline in the U.S.

ACBA’s student population, capped at less than 150, will participate in the design and building of the new college facilities on the grounds of the 40-acre McLeod campus. In addition, the students will work to preserve the existing plantation house and slave quarters on the property.

The college was founded in 1998 when John Paul Huguley led a small team to develop the School of Building Arts. Funded in part by a multi-million dollar grant in the wake of Hurricane Hugo’s destruction of many of Charleston’s historic sites, the school operates out of Charleston’s Old City Jail (which some claim is a haunted structure) and the former Charleston Naval Base now being renovated by the Noisette Company and ACBA.

"The [college] offers an educational experience that is like no other in the United States," says president David R. AvRutick. "As the only college in America offering a baccalaureate degree in applied sciences in the building arts, this is the first opportunity in American history for a person with the passion to become an extraordinarily skilled building artisan to also receive an excellent college education."

The classes at the school are demanding but they are developing artisans. The theory used by the college has professors working to get the students comfortable with using the specialized tools and techniques necessary to create the building-block parts of traditional construction. In addition to their specialized classes, the students also receive instruction in traditional areas of study such as English, math, and social sciences.

Classes won’t officially begin at the McLeod campus for at least two years, but the school has already begun preservation work on the structures and ancient live oaks on the grounds. Even a large bell found mounted in one of the live oaks has been restored—and the college plans to use it as the primary way to call students to class.