After more than two years of blood, sweat, and a lot of financial investment, Paul (T’94) and Emily Ehrgott of Carmel, Indiana, have reached that zenith moment in a long-term project where you look back and marvel that you came through it with your sanity intact and successes to share. The pair have painstakingly renovated and restored the McShane House, built by the son of one of Carmel’s original settlers in 1886.
For Paul, project manager with F.A. Wilhelm Construction Company Inc., and his wife, Emily, an avid auction-goer who loves to bring the old back to life, the house and its accompanying acreage was a dream come true. The vast white behemoth would have plenty of room for their family of five and a yard to roam. But first, there was the issue of decades of neglect that included odd additions, structural challenges (a sinking foundation, among others), and general disrepair that had left the once grand home uninhabitable.
“My dad and uncles grew up in this area, and my kids now go to the same school that my dad went to,” says Paul. “For us, it was the right place. But I’ve been around construction my whole life. It would not have been one to take on if it was your first (renovation).”
Paul and Emily called on friends, family, co-workers —and at one point during a dumpster clean-out party, the entire Carmel area — for assistance in the project. The house was emptied and stripped to bare wood. Plaster, lath, old wiring, flooring, and unsalvageable fixtures went out. Slowly, the couple brought the house back to brilliance, uncovering a home that their three children adore. After several years of work, living in the space now feels a bit surreal albeit wonderful.
“This place is family oriented,” says Emily. “It lends to more active, creative play out here. They can do whatever they want. If they want to get tarps and make a slip-and-slide, they can do it. It’s pretty easy going, which is good because for a long time it was a lot of work.”
Whitney Dennis, executive director of the Carmel Clay Historical Society, says the family’s investment has expanded on the history of the home and saved something invaluable.
“The concern for properties like this one is that a new owner will not appreciate the history, or if there is no purchaser, perhaps the home is demolished,” says Dennis. “Historic buildings are real evidence of the aesthetic and cultural history of a community, and losing that would have been very disappointing. Everyone is thrilled with the new life that Paul and Emily are adding to this centerpiece of Clay Township history.”
Now that the main house is finished, the Ehrgotts are eyeing a summer kitchen structure that still needs renovation. “There’s always work to be done, but it has turned out exactly the way my wife wanted it,” says Paul, while Emily laughs.
“I’ve trained him well,” she says. “But we got a lot of notes on our door while we were doing this. Little old ladies saying ‘thank you.’ It was a haunted house, but I’ve always loved this place. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”