Civil War-era Leavenworth building wins national award for preservation efforts

? A 125-year-old Leavenworth building that once served as a mess hall for Civil War veterans has received a national award.

The structure, known as Eisenhower Ridge Building 19, received the Judges Award as part of this year’s J. Timothy Anderson Awards for Excellence in Historic Rehabilitation.

The honor was handed out last week to the president of Pioneer Group Inc., the development company.

The awards are presented by the National Housing & Rehabilitation Association, which honors real estate projects nationwide that involve rehabilitation and preservation.

Building 19 was once listed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s most endangered places. But it was renovated to be a regional patient account center for the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The $14 million renovation was completed in July.