Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office

Category: Susquehanna

Baseline Survey On the Road Again: Newly Documented Roadside Resources in Pennsylvania

“I can’t wait to get on the road again/On the road again/Goin’ places that I’ve never been/Seein’ things that I may never see again/And I can’t wait to get on the road again…”

-Willie Nelson, “On the Road Again,” 1980

With Pennsylvania’s long transportation history – from railroads and canals to the Pennsylvania Turnpike  and the many beautiful bridges throughout the Commonwealth – it’s no surprise that the teams working on the Baseline Survey Project discovered and inventoried a multitude of Pennsylvania’s previously unrecorded roadside resources!

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Baseline Survey: An Essential Ingredient in Our Preservation Pantry

There are some time-honored recipes in the historic preservation cookbook. The most successful, and dare I say scrumptious, preservation medleys include an essential ingredient – survey. Survey in the historic preservation profession is like the flour in your favorite holiday desserts.

Without survey, many preservation projects are challenged to rise to a superior outcome, just like a cake. My mind just might be overflowing with visions of sugar plums and cookies this holiday season, so I’ll do my best to refrain from too many more baking similes while I share initial Year 1 outcomes from the PA SHPO’s Baseline Survey effort. I think you’ll be as excited about the results as we are!

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New Historical Markers Approved for 2015

The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) approved 22 new historical markers at its March 4, 2015 meeting.  There are currently more than 2,000 PHMC markers throughout Pennsylvania and the program is one of the most popular and visible aspects of the Commission’s work.  The Commission has standard approval criteria that, among other things, require marker subjects be of statewide and/or national historical significance.  The majority of the newly approved markers are in Philadelphia (9), which is also where the most (20) nominations came from.  With such a long and rich history, it is no surprise that Philadelphia has the largest number of markers of any county in the state (over 250). The Marker Program encourages broad distribution, so individuals and organizations from the other 66 counties are encouraged to research their history and develop nominations for people, places, events, and innovations with statewide and/or national historical significance in their own area. Continue reading

Just Listed: Recent Additions to the National Register of Historic Places

Just Listed is a semi-annual feature of Pennsylvania’s cultural resources that were recently listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Since our last Just Listed post, 27 resources from all corners of the Commonwealth have been listed in the National Register of Historic Places.  You can explore these and other historic properties in Pennsylvania via CRGIS, our online map and database. Continue reading

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