Rick Fisher, who is leading restoration work in the basement "dungeons" under the municipal building, told the Columbia Borough Council on Aug. 7 he hopes to restore the space to reflect its 1836 appearance and operate it as a small museum.

Fisher said, "I'm trying to restore them back to what they, you know, should look like from 1836." He described finding two charred two-by-fours he believes are original fragments of a wooden floor and showed a 1967 newspaper photograph of workers removing a pile of wooden planks he said are the original floor.

Fisher described a plan to reinstall a wooden floor made from pressure-treated two-by-fours, retain original cell walls, restore shutters and hinges, and display artifacts such as a bunk, a cot and a pair of historic handcuffs. He also presented mock-ups of interpretive panels that would run down the hallway and briefly told stories drawn from newspaper accounts about people held in the dungeons.

Fisher said painting and some metal work have been completed and that volunteers and donors have raised money for initial work; he reported about $2,300 in a project account raised through lectures and donations. He asked the borough to consider supporting or facilitating continued restoration and noted that the space is humid and that durable materials will be needed.

Fisher also outlined a visitor program: self-guided displays and Saturday tours he currently leads, plus the long-term goal of adding mannequins and historically styled lanterns for interpretation. He said an emphasis would be on historical accuracy based on surviving newspaper accounts, since records were lost in a 1947 fire.

Council members thanked Fisher for the work and asked procedural questions about materials, access, and ongoing maintenance; Fisher said the project is volunteer led, already partially funded and would benefit from continued community support.