A $400,000 gift saved Neil Armstrong’s childhood home, with public tours planned by 2030

A gift for preservation

Schreiber, who served 20 years in the U.S. Air Force before becoming an American Airlines pilot, watched Armstrong’s first steps on the moon as a nine-year-old in 1969. He said his father encouraged him to make a mark in life.

The transaction is scheduled to close Monday, after which the historical society will take ownership. Society president Gerald Siesel said the group could not undertake the project alone.

Restoring Armstrong’s home

The society aims to restore the two-story house to the period when Armstrong was growing up there. He built model airplanes in the dining room and tested them in a basement wind tunnel he made.

Researchers are examining what the home looked like in the 1940s. The society is also speaking with local leaders about raising money for renovation and ongoing maintenance.

A home with history

Karen Mikesell bought the property in 1988 and hosted nine astronauts there, including Buzz Aldrin. She recalled that Aldrin visited Armstrong’s former bedroom several years after Armstrong died in 2012, and became tearful.

A public opening planned

Siesel said the historical society hopes to prepare the house for public tours by 2030, marking 100 years since Armstrong’s birth. The home first went on the market in August in almost 40 years.