photo by: Lauren Fox

The archway that leads to Haskell Indian Nations University's football stadium is pictured on Dec. 30, 2020.

Last month, roofing and concrete patching repairs were made to Haskell Indian Nations University’s historic stadium archway entrance, but more work will be needed to keep the structure up for generations to come.

Aaron Hove, executive director of the Haskell Foundation, spoke to the Journal-World on recently about the renovation efforts, which were made possible through two grants from the Heritage Conservation Council of Douglas County.

A first grant in the amount of $10,000 allowed Haskell to hire an engineering firm, DGM Consultants, to perform an assessment of the structure in September 2019.

“The assessment indicated that there’s quite a bit of deterioration to the structure and that there’s greater deterioration in the south half than the rest of the structure,” Hove said. “A lot of the problem with the structure is moisture penetration into the concrete.”

photo by: Contributed Photo

The archway that leads to Haskell Indian Nations University’s football stadium is pictured in Sept. of 2019, when an engineering firm came to take an assessment of the structure.

The consulting firm also created a preservation plan, and part of that plan included the need to reroof the upper tier and two lower side tiers of the archway. Hove said the Heritage Conservation Council of Douglas County was “gracious enough” to give another grant in the amount of $15,000 for that work to be done.

The reroofing was completed in early December by J.B. Turner and Sons Roofing, and prior to that, some concrete patching was completed by Innovative Masonry Restoration.

Hove said that while it is difficult to see a difference in the archway from a ground view, “this was an important step to try to preserve this iconic structure.”

Haskell’s stadium archway was completed in 1926, and it is a memorial to the 415 soldiers from Haskell who served in the United States military during World War I. Like the football stadium it leads to, the archway is a state and national historic site, Hove said, and both have fallen into disrepair. Hove said the “big picture goal” would be the renovation of the entire stadium.

The celebration of the completion of the stadium and archway in 1926 was an important cultural event in Lawrence. Thousands of people converged on the community for a four-day extravaganza, which included performances, parades and appearances from government officials, famous Haskell alumni and tribal chiefs from across the country.

photo by: Kansas Historical Society

The entrance to Haskell’s football stadium is pictured Oct. 30, 1926.

Since 1926, Hove said he believed the only type of work that had been done to the archway was cosmetic work, such as painting or patch work.

The work that was completed in early December will help slow future deterioration of the concrete structure, however, it is only a portion of the repairs the consulting firm outlined in its report, Hove said. It was estimated that about another $375,000 in repairs are needed in order for the structure to withstand Kansas weather for generations to come. Most of the money would go toward refinishing the exterior concrete.

“A lot of the deteriorated concrete needs to be removed,” Hove said. The repairs would include repairing the exterior concrete at a depth of two inches or more.

Hove said he has been working to send out fundraising requests and seek funding from several different sources — including a number of Native American tribes. Those interested in supporting the completion of the effort may donate online at haskellfoundation.org or by mail to 155 Indian Avenue, No. 5019.

“We’d love to keep going and preserve this incredible structure. So we’re going to keep working at it,” Hove said.