It had been blowing hard from the east and the red sky on the July morning of 2013 did not concern Presque Isle lifeguard Darren Reading as he headed out for a group swim off the shore of the beach. Continue Reading →
The Keystone Grant and the Mystery of the Missing Piazza
Ever wonder just how much scholarship of construction chronology is behind your visit to a historic property in Pennsylvania? Or how that research is funded? Woodford is one of Fairmount Park’s most carefully documented and researched buildings because of its architectural significance and as its interpretive use as a historic house museum. Recorded in the Historic American Building Survey (HABS) in 1932 and listed as a National Historic Landmark in 1963, the building was studied and theorized by architectural historians for decades. The Naomi Wood Trust at Woodford Mansion turned to the PA SHPO’s Keystone Historic Preservation Grant program for financial help to plan the historic restoration of Woodford’s 1772 piazza on the west elevation of the 2-story main house. In addition to sifting through all of those relevant published sources and past theories, an archaeological investigation would be the foundation to restore this missing element. Continue Reading →
Certified Local Government Reboot – Public Comments Welcome
The Certified Local Government (CLG) Program has been part of the national preservation toolbox since the early 1980s. Like other programs established by the National Historic Preservation Act, the CLG program is administered by each State Historic Preservation Office based on state-specific guidelines approved by the National Park Service. Pennsylvania’s CLG guidelines procedures were last updated in 2009, but haven’t changed substantially since the program started almost 30 years ago. That’s all about to change! The PA SHPO has recently released a draft of proposed changes to the CLG program and will be accepting comments from the public until December 4, 2017. Continue Reading →
Archaeology Month: Celebrating Recordation, New Insights, and Preservation
Fall is always an exciting time of year for archaeologists across the state as we gear up to celebrate Pennsylvania Archaeology Month each October! I know it’s a bit early, but I didn’t want anyone to be caught off-guard come October 1st. Continue Reading →
Listening to the Public: Results of the Marketing Archaeology Survey
In the previous Marketing Archaeology blog post, we introduced you to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP)-eligible Armstrong Site and the associated current Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) road reconstruction and widening project . Continue Reading →
The Power of Preservation: Announcing 2017 Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Award Recipients
Celebrating projects from all across the state of Pennsylvania, twenty-three people and projects will be honored at the Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Awards on October 12. Continue Reading →
Historic Communities (by design) are Healthy Communities
About a month or so ago, I was checking my APA PA news feed at lunch one day and saw a post about taking a survey about how “healthy” my community is. I always try to take surveys like this – because they are important and matter and because I know how hard it can be to get people to participate in these kinds of things. Continue Reading →
Datasets on PA Historical Markers and Agriculture Now Online
The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) is pleased to announce the recent addition of two datasets to OpenDataPA: Pennsylvania Historical Markers and the 1850 Agricultural Production in Pennsylvania. Wondering what datasets and open data have to do with the PA SHPO? Lots, apparently.
CLG Spotlight: Pittsburgh
From Philadelphia (Pop. 1.5 million) to Mercersburg, Franklin County (Pop. 1500) and located in over a third of Pennsylvania counties, the Certified Local Government (CLG) program provides exclusive funding and technical assistance for local governments. This week’s post introduces us to Pittsburgh as a CLG and provides a glimpse into the amazing things they are doing through this program. Continue Reading →
Community Connections: Summer 2017 Update
I was looking back through our posts from the last few months and thought “Yikes! Its been six months since my last update on the statewide preservation plan!” So read on for the latest installment of Community Connections: Planning for Preservation in Pennsylvania. Continue Reading →