Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office

Category: PA Trails of History

Intern Introspect: MARS Sites Survey Internship

My name is Sarah Hoffeditz, and I spent the first half of this summer gaining unique experiences through my internship at the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office in Harrisburg, PA.

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Make this Preservation Month a Success by Sharing Your Story!

National Historic Preservation Month was started in 1973 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation to draw attention to older and historic places across the country and to highlight the benefits of historic preservation in the nation’s communities.

This year, we’re celebrating National Historic Preservation Month by asking our readers to share with us a Preservation Success Stories in their communities. And you might just win something!

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#PreservAtionHappensHere @ Eckley Miners’ Village

An intra-agency effort is underway to plan for the future of PHMC’s Eckley Miners’ Village. In October 2018, the PHMC was awarded a federal grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission to support the completion of a strategic plan for Eckley. The desired outcome will result in a sustainable future for Eckley that will enable the historic property to serve as a regional asset. The PHMC’s State Historic Preservation Office and Bureau of Historic Sites and Museums are partnering to engage stakeholders, gather ideas from the regional community, and lead the planning process. Continue reading

Hands On: The PHMC Preservation Trades Apprenticeship Program

by Joe Lauver

(Above:  Apprentices learning the basics of mortar removal and pointing from James Houston, the Preservation Field Services Supervisor at the apprentice training workshop at Daniel Boone Homestead (PHMC staff)

Just as rust (and rot) never sleeps, historic buildings rarely let those who are responsible for their preservation rest. The ultimate goal of preservation is to maintain a structure in such a way that only sacrificial elements (i.e. exterior paint, roofing, and mortar) ever get replaced. The ongoing task of performing this level of maintenance, and the additional work often necessary when it isn’t routinely done, requires special skills that are becoming harder to find in the general construction industry. In an effort to bolster the pool of preservation trades practitioners the PHMC started the Preservation Trades Apprenticeship Program in 2006. The program is a partnership between the PHMC, non-profit organizations that perform preservation trades, and private contractors from across the Commonwealth.  Continue reading

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