I’m happy to introduce you to our newest PA SHPO staffers! We are very excited to have Kristen Walczesky join us as an Environmental Review archaeologist in late 2022 and Marissa Barret as a National Register reviewer and John Wood as the Preservation Incentives manager this year.
Author: Shelby Weaver Splain (Page 1 of 17)
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 proactive and dedicated team of historic preservationists, historians, archaeologists, and planners? The Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO) is seeking a Historic Preservation Specialist with a discipline in architectural history or history within the Environmental Review Division.
Are you a highly skilled historic preservationist with National Register experience? The Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO) is seeking a Historic Preservation Supervisor to coordinate the office’s National Register of Historic Places program. Take the next step in your professional career and apply to work with us today!
Earlier this month, the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (PA DCED) announced that 22 projects across the Commonwealth were awarded a total of $5 million in Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Tax Credits (PA HPTC) through the FY 2022-2023 PA HPTC Allocation.
Are you seeking a position in the historic preservation field that will allow you to make a difference? Are you interested in assisting partners and the public understand how incentive programs and good stewardship of historic properties can help preserve significant places throughout Pennsylvania?
If this is you, apply to join our team of dedicated preservationists, historians, and archaeologists working with Pennsylvania’s historic communities to achieve positive preservation outcomes.
Celebrating Concord Township and the Spring Valley AME Church
This week’s 2022 Community Initiative Award winner spotlight is on Concord Township’s preservation of the Spring Valley AME Church in Delaware County.
This project in Delaware County caught the eagle eye of one of my colleagues last year from some press reporting and I’m glad it did. She just happened to be the SHPO’s reviewer for most projects that were undertaken with funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), particularly using Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) money.
Using CDBG funds for historic preservation – like Concord Township did – is a great way for communities to invest in the older and historic places that matter to them and that tell their full stories.
Celebrating the Blairsville Area Underground Railroad
This week’s 2022 Community Initiative Award winner spotlight is on the Blairsville Underground Railroad organization in Blairsville, Indiana County.
Blairsville was laid out in the early 19th century along the Conemaugh River at the southern end of Indiana County, about 40 miles east of Pittsburgh along the planned route of the Huntingdon, Cambria, and Indiana Turnpike. Blairsville’s history and growth is closely tied to its transportation corridors – the river, the stagecoach in 1818, the canal in 1829, and the rail in 1851 – and natural deposits of salt, coal, and iron, which together supported a thriving and flourishing community.
What many may not know about Blairsville is its African American history, particularly related to abolition and the Underground Railroad (UGRR). The borough had one of the larger Black communities in Indiana County and the county’s first African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Zion Church was organized there in 1844. Indiana County was an important and active Underground Railroad stop in Pennsylvania as freedom seekers escaped from their enslavers in search of freedom.
I asked Denise Doyle from the Blairsville Underground Railroad organization to share their story with us.
Celebrating the Friends of Sheepford Road Bridge
Each week in May, to celebrate National Historic Preservation Month, we will highlight one of the 2022 Community Initiative Award winners. In this week’s post, I asked Janice Lynx, Executive Director of the West Short Historical Society, about their successful efforts to save Sheepford Road Bridge.
Sheepford Road Bridge is one of the first bridges to receive funds from PennDOT’s Historic Metal Truss Capital Rehabilitation Program, a new program created to promote the rehabilitation of historic metal truss bridges. I’ll take this opportunity to let our readers know that we also publish a biannual newsletter in partnership with PennDOT dedicated to the preservation and reuse of metal truss bridges. You can sign up here!
What better time of year than National Historic Preservation Month to announce the latest round of PA SHPO’s Community Initiative Award winners! The four recipients and their projects showcase a range of preservation success stories, demonstrating the value of volunteers, creativity, and community engagement.
Are you an innovative and forward-thinking professional with strong program administration skills? Are you seeking a leadership position that will allow you to advance your career and make a difference?
If this is you, apply to join the PA SHPO team of dedicated preservationists, historians, and archaeologists working with Pennsylvania’s historic communities to achieve positive preservation outcomes.
Don’t wait! Applications due May 18, 2023.
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