Rodney Gasch, with Historic Harmony, talks about life in the 1800s inside the Ziegler Log Haus in Harmony on Monday, April 24, 2023. The building needs a new roof, which is estimated to cost $20,000. The group is seeking donations of slate tiles for shingles on the new roof. The existing roof is cedar. Cary Shaffer/Butler Eagle

HARMONY — Historic Harmony received a $7,500 Preserving America Grant this month for the installation of a new slate roof on the Ziegler Log Haus in the borough.

The grant was awarded by Americana Corner, a Georgia-based foundation dedicated to American history from 1607 to 1876, according to Rodney Gasch, president of Historic Harmony.

“Each year they give out several $100,000 to preservation projects, and this fit in that, but that $7,500 will not even cover half of the cost of the roof,” Gasch said. “So we hope we can either get people to donate old antique slate that’s in good condition — and that might get us through another 100 years — otherwise, if we do the wooden shakes, that’s probably 50 years.”

The cabin’s roof, reconstructed from wooden shakes 50 years ago, has begun to decline from its ongoing battle with the elements.