PERKASI, Pennsylvania — The former home of Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Pearl S. Buck has reopened after an extensive eight-year restoration.
The Pearl S. Buck House displays artifacts from the author’s life, including her many prizes and honors, gifts from global dignitaries and the desk where she wrote her novel “The Good Earth.”
Many of the renovations involved structural and climate-control improvements and repairs including the restoration of windows and doors, repairs to the slate roof, complete rewiring, replacing security system equipment, re-pointing the exterior of the house, and improving the structural integrity of the first floor and reinforcing the existing second and third floors.
The changes have allowed for an expanded interpretation of the house that includes five additional areas not previously made available to visitors.
Many items that have been in storage are now displayed, including family phonographs in the living room, Buck’s clothing on dress forms throughout the house and her Ediphone in her office. Two of the children’s bedrooms also have been restored.
A new international gift shop features Asian-themed gifts, scarves, jewelry, hostess gifts, children’s items and Pearl Buck’s books.
The renovations have allowed the house to be open year-round for the first time.
