JAY — The Jay Historical Society is still trying to put its historical documents and archives back together in the Florence Raymond Building.

The end portion of the building that housed the Archive Room and office were destroyed when a car went nearly all the way through the end of the building on April 2. The section has been rebuilt but the historical artifacts and office furnishings and equipment have not been put back in their rightful place.

A new desk, still in a box, leaned up against a wall Tuesday waiting to be built. The original desk was damaged in the accident. All new tables needed to be bought as well. They, too, are leaning against walls.

A stack of old picture and painting frames, many broken, sit on a table in the main room.

Society members have moved some of the displaced artifacts, some in boxes, others in stacks, back into the newly rebuilt rooms.

“It was a mess. All the stuff was all over the place. You have no idea,” president Dot White said.

White, 84, has been racking up the miles looking for stand-alone black metal shelving units. She has found wood units but not the all-metal needed to hold historical items.

She needs five new units, 6-feet tall and about 36 to 38 inches wide, to match the remaining unit not damaged or destroyed. The shelves are 16 to 18 inches in depth.

This year will the be the second one in a row that the society has not been able to hold an open house. The main museum is in need of having its underpinning fixed before tours can be conducted again.

The society is holding a lawn and food sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 31, beside the Florence Raymond Building and Holmes-Crafts Homestead. They are also holding a raffle to benefit the society. Larry Wright and Friends will perform from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.

Crafters can also set up tables for $5 each. For more information, White can be reached at 897-4876.

“We are only at the very beginning of getting everything straightened out,” White said.

dperry@sunjournal.com

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