Meg Hardy moved to Longmont only three months ago. Soon after arriving, she found herself exploring Longmont’s history through the St. Vrain Historical Society and soon her business became the organization’s first premier sponsor.
Hardy is an interior designer who enjoys restoring historical elements of buildings. She is also very conscious of where the items she uses come from.
Her desire to find locally sourced materials and items inspired her dream to open a business that offered just that. On Sept. 23, Hardy will open Bungalow Interiors at 324 Main St.
Bungalow Interiors will house only items that can be found locally or in the U.S. she said.
She also saw an opportunity to merge her career passion with her love of history and made a donation to the St. Vrain Historical Society for its restoration efforts of the Affloter Cabin.
The Affloter Cabin was built in 1860 south of Haystack Mountain on Left Hand Creek. According to the city of Longmont’s website, it is considered to be the older cabin in Boulder County. It was relocated to Old Mill Park near downtown Longmont in the 1970s.
The cabin operates as an educational tool to teach an average of 1,000 third-graders a year what a home looked like in the pioneer days of Colorado.
“It’s just a wonderful opportunity that you can actually step back in time and see a pioneer cabin,” Alyce Davis, executive director of St. Vrain Historical Society.
The cabin has begun to show signs of deterioration, Davis said. The logs along the cabin's foundation have begun to rot due to water pooling at its base.
The historical society is in the process of raising $48,600 to complete the first two phases of restoration to the cabin. These phases include adding rain gutters to the cabin to divert water and restoring the rotting logs, Davis said.
“We are incredibly thankful that there are businesses like Meg’s that step up and help support the organization. In addition to Old Mill Park, we have three other historical properties that we own and manage, so when anyone donates, including Meg, that frees up funds elsewhere in our budget. It means the world to us,” Davis said.
