Groton — For the first time, the 120-year-old Avery Monument, commemorating one of Groton's founding families, has been restored.

The bust of Capt. James Avery, which had turned green from age and exposure to pollutants over the years, is now a deep brown that glistens in the sun. The marble column the sculpture sits atop shines anew and the commemorative plaque at its base was washed clean of stains and mineral buildup.

The monument was erected in 1900 to commemorate the site of “The Hive” — the Avery family home where Capt. James Avery’s son lived with his family from 1671 until his death in 1728. Generations of Averys lived in the home until it burned to the ground in 1894 in a fire caused by sparks from a passing train.

Two stone chimneys, a well and some stepping stones from a footpath to the home still remain at 880 Poquonnock Road, which is owned by the Avery Memorial Association, a 125-year-old nonprofit that maintains multiple properties related to the family.

A few years after the monument was erected, a bronze bust of the elder Capt. James Avery, who lived 1621-1700, was added atop.

Over the last 120 years, the marble column faded, the bust was covered in built-up saturated sulfates and the plaque showing a picture of The Hive had turned green in color and stained by rain.

The Avery association this year held a fundraiser to give the monument its first proper cleaning and restoration, raising about $7,000, according to Fred Burdick, a board member for the association.

The Averys were among the founding families of Groton, Burdick said, and the 500-member Avery Memorial Association is committed to honoring their legacy. Burdick, himself, is a direct descendant of the family.

The association hired Buccacio Sculpture Services LLC, based in Canton, Mass. The company restores historical monuments throughout New England.

The company follows American Institute for Conservation guidelines, said owner Jeff Buccacio, who restored the Avery monument under the hot sun Thursday morning, and focuses on conserving the integrity of historical pieces.

“We only remove anything that’s harmful,” he said. “And everything we do is 100% reversible.”

The bronze bust and plaque on the statue had turned green from exposure to things like salt, acid rain and car emissions, said Buccacio, so restoring it began with a patina treatment and gentle cleaning to remove saturated sulfates from the surface to get the sculpture back to a brown color.

“This is likely what it would’ve looked like years ago,” Buccacio told Burdick.

Buccacio then put a sealer and wax on the monument.

Despite going more than a century without having work done, the monument was in “remarkable condition,” according to Calvin Hubbard, assistant fabricator and restorer, who helped with the restoration Thursday. He said this restoration was minimally invasive and more of a conservation effort than repair.

“It’s great to give these old monuments and sculptures life again,” Hubbard said.

Burdick said he thought the monument looked beautiful and he was glad the legacy of the Avery family was being preserved. “I think it’s important that people know their history and know where they come from,” he said. “I believe in protecting the past.”

“Just to think that it hasn’t looked like that for 120 years,” said Cathy Blaisdell Johnson, interim president of the Avery Memorial Association and also a descendant of the family. “I’m very happy with how it turned out.”

The association was supposed to have a grand rededication for the monument in July but had to cancel because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The group hopes to reschedule for next year.

The association also has been restoring the Ebenezer Avery House and Museum for several years. That property is owned by the state and the association helps maintain it, keeping it close to how it was in 1781, when the house was used as a field hospital during the Revolutionary War battle up the hill at Fort Griswold. Through donations, the group is restoring it one side at a time one year at a time, Burdick said.

The association also plans to have yearly maintenance of the monument, Burdick said. Anyone who wishes to donate to the group's restoration fund can mail donations to P.O. Box 7245, Groton, CT 06340, or contact Blaisdell Johnson by email at cblaisdell79@comcast.net.

t.hartz@theday.com