Patriot Roofing & Exteriors Honored with 2026 Historic Wilmington Foundation Preservation Award for Latimer House Restoration Project
Patriot Roofing & Exteriors is proud to announce that its work on the historic Latimer House enslaved quarters has been recognized with a 2026 Preservation Award from the Historic Wilmington Foundation.
Presented during the Historic Wilmington Foundation’s annual Preservation Awards Ceremony on May 14, 2026, at the Historic New Hanover County Courthouse, the award celebrates exemplary preservation efforts that protect and honor Wilmington’s architectural and cultural heritage. This year’s ceremony recognized 16 outstanding projects, organizations, businesses, and individuals committed to preservation through adaptive reuse, rehabilitation, and restoration.
The award-winning project focused on one of Wilmington’s most historically significant structures: the surviving enslaved quarters located behind the Latimer House at 126 S. 3rd Street. Built in 1852, the structure once housed eleven enslaved individuals connected to the workshop of brick masons R.B. and J.C. Wood. Following emancipation, it continued to serve as housing for domestic workers into the early twentieth century.
Today, the building is one of only two known enslaved quarters open to the public in Wilmington, providing a rare and important opportunity to share a more complete and honest account of the city’s history.
When Patriot Roofing & Exteriors became involved in the project, the structure faced significant challenges. Decades-old roofing materials, ongoing leaks, water intrusion, and drainage failures threatened the building’s long-term preservation. The goal was not to modernize the structure, but to carefully protect it while maintaining its historic integrity.
The existing deteriorated membrane roof was meticulously removed and replaced with a new EPDM roofing system, ISO insulation boards, and custom-fabricated metal trim designed to match the original historic profile. Every aspect of the project was completed with preservation in mind.
“What makes this recognition especially meaningful is that the best preservation work is often the least noticeable,” said Wyatt Johnson, project specialist at Patriot Roofing & Exteriors. “The building looks nearly unchanged today, and that’s exactly what we hoped to achieve. Our team was honored to help protect a structure that tells such an important story in Wilmington’s history.”
The completed restoration ensures the building can continue serving as an educational resource for future generations while safeguarding a significant piece of the community’s past.
Patriot Roofing & Exteriors extends its gratitude to the Lower Cape Fear Historical Society and Historic Wilmington Foundation for their dedication to preserving the stories and places that shape Wilmington’s identity.
“As contractors, we often focus on protecting buildings from the elements,” Johnson added. “This project reminded us that sometimes we’re also helping preserve the stories, experiences, and history those buildings represent.”
To learn more about the Historic Wilmington Foundation visit: https://historicwilmington.org/our-foundation/