Historic downtown Bedford windows find home in Florida

Two Star of David stained glass windows that were part of downtown Bedford for 100 years have a new home — in Lake Worth, Florida.

The windows were removed from the Bedford Furniture Galleries building on 15th Street last September after the furniture store closed following the death of its longtime owner, David Jacobs.

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Mike and Robin Johnson of Lake Worth, Florida, had the windows removed and restored. Dave Jacobs was Mike's uncle. Mike's parents, Joy (Jacobs) and William R. Johnson were both Bedford natives. Mike didn't grow up in Bedford but he traveled to his parents' hometown often to visit his extended family that included his grandfather, Abe Jacobs.

"The store was part of my life for so many years and I wanted to keep that connection to Bedford," he said. "I have wonderful memories there. I played in that store ... by the stairs is a row of cabinets that my dad built."

The windows were installed around 1921-22 as part of a storefront renovation by Abe Jacobs and M.B. Goldman, who first opened the store. The windows faced out to the street. Although not large in size, they were noticeable.

Over time and unprotected from the elements, the windows, each measuring 28 by 28 inches, were dirty and some of the glass was damaged. Through Kim Floyd, who had worked at the furniture store, the Johnsons found Sarah Siepler, a Bedford stained glass artist who specializes in custom work, repairs and restorations, to restore the windows.

In 2021, Cutting Edge Glass removed the windows and after that Siepler went to work, disassembling them, cleaning each piece, creating a pattern to reassemble the glass and soldering all the pieces back together, then making the windows suitable for hanging.

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With a border of white glass, the Star of David is formed by two triangles, one white and one blue with amber-colored glass filling the center. The surrounding glass pieces are purple and mauve pink. Glass restoration is a lengthy process. Once the pieces are cleaned, the window is rebuilt from a corner going out. Siepler spent about 65 hours on the windows.

Siepler's work can take many directions. This one took her all the way to Florida to deliver the windows, where she got to meet the Johnsons and work in a family vacation with her daughters.

"Restorations have been really interesting for me, to learn not just about the windows, but the buildings and their history," she said. "Mike and Robin were so welcoming and I'm glad I could restore windows that meant so much to their family. They love history and want to keep them in the family and pass down to their children."

Bedford Furniture Galleries has a unique history. It was founded in 1909 by MB Goldman at the corner of 15th and I streets as the Bedford Furniture and Carpet Co. Abe Jacobs worked for Goldman and in 1949 bought the store from Goldman. Abe and his wife Charlotte had three sons and a daughter. Son Dave joined his dad in the business, and became sole owner in 1969. Abe lived to be 107; Dave was 99 when he died in 2020.

From a Times-Mail story, Dave recalled dusting the store when he was just 6 and going to the store every day after school to unpack boxes of furniture. Another interesting piece of history is when the store from the corner to its current spot in 1921 to make room for the construction of the Greystone Hotel.

'Meaningful work'

After the Times-Mail published a story about the window restoration last September, Siepler's phone was ringing with calls for restoration work.

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"I've had so many people come to me with old windows under their bed, not knowing what to do with them or how to get them repaired," she said. "I'm glad I'm able to do what I do."

She said it's meaningful work and she loves when she gets to see the customer with the restored glass.

"It means a lot to me to do that for them," she said.

For stained glass restoration or custom work, Siepler can be contacted at sarahsiepler@gmail.com, or 812-797-5613.

Contact Times-Mail Staff Writer Carol Johnson at cjohnson@tmnews.com or 812-277-7252.

This article originally appeared on The Times-Mail: Historic downtown Bedford windows find home in Florida