Last month, PA SHPO staff and interns enjoyed a two-day educational team meeting in Venango County to learn more about archaeology, northwest Pennsylvania, and the area’s fascinating history. We were fortunate enough to have some beautiful weather and the help of our local partners and colleagues from the Jefferson County History Center, Drake Well, PHMC Sites and Museums, and the State Museum.
Author: Shelby Weaver Splain (Page 1 of 19)
Shelby Weaver Splain is the Education and Special Initiatives Coordinator for the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office. Shelby is a native of Bucks County and holds a Masters degree in Historic Preservation Planning from Cornell University and a Bachelor of Arts with Honors in Historic Preservation from Goucher College.
Are you interested in joining a dedicated and pro-active team of preservationists? If so, the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO) has the perfect opportunity for you! We are seeking a Historic Preservation Specialist with a discipline in architectural history or history within the Environmental Review division. Apply today to join a team that strives to discover, protect, and share Pennsylvania’s past, inspiring others to value and use our history in meaningful ways!
Don’t miss out on this opportunity! PA SHPO can now work from home except for days when you’ll be out visiting Pennsylvania’s historic places and one day a month in the office with your colleagues in Harrisburg.
It’s been a minute since we last posted about some PA-SHARE improvements. PA-SHARE’s developers and PA SHPO staff have been hard at work continuing with the 2.0 enhancements we announced last year.
Most of the recent changes are in response to user feedback and suggestions.
Are you interested in joining a pro-active and dedicated team of preservationists, historians, and archaeologists? In this Historic Preservation Specialist role, you will specialize in our online data management and cultural resources GIS tool, the Pennsylvania’s State Historic and Archaeological Resource Exchange (PA-SHARE). If you want to preserve our history with the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission (PHMC), this is the job for you!
Don’t miss out on this opportunity! The deadline to apply has been extended to July 5, 2024. PA SHPO can now work from home except for days when you’ll be out visiting Pennsylvania’s historic places and one day a month in the office with your colleagues in Harrisburg.
Are you a highly skilled historic preservationist with National Register knowledge and experience? The Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO) is seeking a Historic Preservation Specialist to work as a National Register reviewer, focused on assisting the public with determinations of eligibility and National Register nominations.
Don’t miss out on this opportunity! The deadline to apply has been extended to July 5, 2024. PA SHPO can now work from home except for days when you’ll be out visiting Pennsylvania’s historic places and one day a month in the office with your colleagues in Harrisburg.
This week’s 2023 Community Initiative Award winner spotlight is on the Slate Hill Cemetery in Lower Makefield Township, Bucks County.
Lower Makefield’s Slate Hill Cemetery is an intact Colonial-era graveyard that was established in 1690 as a Quaker burial ground and was later expanded to include the township’s first public cemetery. It contains about 580 burials, including veterans of the U.S. Colored Troops who served in the Civil War. The earliest known burial dates to 1698 and the last known burial was in 1918.
Recently, the Township – which is one of Pennsylvania’s Certified Local Governments (CLG) – began an ambitious project to document, preserve, and promote the history of the cemetery. I asked some of the folks from the Historical Commission, which is spearheading the effort, to share the story with us.
This week’s 2023 Community Initiative Award winner spotlight is on the Titusville Iron Works in Titusville.
The Titusville Iron Works traces its roots to the Titusville Manufacturing Co., the first foundry and machine shop exclusively serving the oil industry, founded in 1860. Local businessmen purchased the company in 1895, renamed it the Titusville Iron Works, diversified its product line, and expanded it with new buildings and acreage.
Over the first few decades of the 20th century, the iron works evolved as owners consolidated other companies and business interests in the facility. In the early 1940s the federal government invested in new machinery and buildings for the iron works to support the war effort. By 1964 the plant was closed and the property and buildings subdivided.
Fast forward to today, and the site of this 19th century foundry is a busy event venue and preservation success story. I asked owner Bob Joyce to share the story with us.
Each week in May, to celebrate National Historic Preservation Month, we will highlight one of the 2023 Community Initiative Award winners. In this week’s post, I asked Josh Stull with the Nicholson Heritage Association about their work preserving the Nicholson Train Station.
For the past few years, PA SHPO has kicked off National Historic Preservation Month by announcing the newest Community Initiative Award winners. The four 2023 recipients and their projects showcase a variety of preservation success stories, demonstrating the importance of preserving those places at the heart of Pennsylvania’s communities that embody its past and present stories.
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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