Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office

Category: Women’s History Month

How Women Shaped Preservation in Pennsylvania

Several years ago, my colleagues and I at the PA SHPO compiled a history of preservation achievements in Pennsylvania. This interesting trek through the preservation timeline was published in the Winter 2016 issue of Pennsylvania Heritage magazine and was added as a chapter in the current statewide historic preservation plan, #PreservationHappensHere. This week in honor of Women’s History Month, I’m taking a deeper dive into the role of women in Pennsylvania’s preservation accomplishments.

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Mill-Rae: A Monument of Women’s History Hidden in Plain Sight

High on a hill overlooking the Somerton neighborhood of Philadelphia stands Cranaleith Spiritual Center, a beautiful Shingle style house that overlooks ten acres of gardens, groves of trees, a pond, and a sensitively-designed modern retreat facility.  It’s a lovely place nestled amongst a quiet residential neighborhood.  But beneath the bucolic setting is a significant story about the struggle for equality, ties to important figures and events in the women’s suffrage movement, and an organization’s commitment to preserving and promoting those legacies.  In January I spoke with Cranaleith staff about how they’re using those stories to raise the profile of the organization and attract new audiences to the facility and its mission. Continue reading

Spotlight Series: National Register – The Irving Female College

The Spotlight Series is an occassional series that highlights interesting people, places, programs, and partner organizations working on historic preservation issues.

During the Civil War, countless Northern soldiers passed through the small town of Mechanicsburg on the Cumberland Valley Railroad.  Often, hordes of townspeople turned out to cheer them on; sights not soon forgotten by the new soldiers.

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