The Underground Railroad Society of Cass County purchased the Victorian home of UGRR stationmasters James E. and Sarah B. Bonine in December of 2010 and has been restoring it since that time.    When it was time to refinish the poplar floors upstairs two years ago, URSCC called on Greg Nichols Wood Floors of Three Rivers, Michigan because they had worked on the them before.  Greg and his wife and business partner Cindy told URSCC at that time that they were donating their services.  They were raised in the area and the Bonine House is meaningful to them.  The upstairs required a light sanding and finish coat, a relatively quick job.  Greg said to call when ready for the first floor.  URSCC called recently and Greg and his crew got to work, sanding the living room, parlor, dining room, office and hallway floors, and front and back stair treads.  The work was often close and needed to be painstakingly done by hand.  Then three coats of tung oil were applied with light sanding in between.  The downstairs floors reflect the two eras of the Bonine House.  In the original 1845 Greek Revival part of the house, the floors are poplar, however in the 1870  Second Empire remodel and addition, the floors are ash.  This causes variation in color and grain, but blend nicely when finished.

“We are so grateful to Greg and Cindy and the Nichols Wood Flooring crew for our beautiful Bonine House floors.,” said URSCC representative Cathy Lapointe.  “It is another step toward completing the restoration of this iconic home, which we hope to finish in 2018.”  A photo gallery of the floor refinishing process and lovely results can be seen on the URSCC website, urscc.org  The Bonine House at Penn Road and M-60 in Vandalia is open for tours from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday through September.