Buckingham, Mass.
— Construction is nearing completion on a $1 billion renovation of the Buckingham palace that was one of the most iconic historic buildings in the United States during the early 1900s.
The renovation of a palace that housed the governor, the king and other dignitaries is expected to cost more than $5 million, according to an estimate by the State House of Representatives’ Office of the Legislative Analyst.
The palace’s former occupant, George Washington University, purchased the property in 1912, and the property was built to be a museum and an amphitheater.
It has been closed since 2009, when the state’s largest university, the University of Massachusetts, purchased it for $1 million.
The State House said the renovation will include replacing some of the building’s façade, restoring stained glass windows and making improvements to the marble stairway.
Buckingham is in the process of renovating a number of other historic buildings including the Buckhampton House in Springfield, the Buckhead Hotel in Rockland County and the former governor’s mansion in Springfield.
A state official said the state is currently in the planning phase for the renovation of more than 200 buildings, but did not have an estimate on how much that would cost.
The former president of the State of Massachusetts George H.W. Bush was one the first American presidents to visit the property, which was built in the 1880s and later moved to its current location.
A replica of the historic building that houses the state legislature, as well as the Buckworths residence, was unveiled at the ceremony in Buckhamton on Monday.
It is the second of the two Buckhams that the Statehouse plans to demolish in the coming years.
The other project is an $8 million project that will restore the former president’s house.