Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office
Two years ago, the Pennsylvania Archaeological Council (PAC) teamed up with Pennsylvania Hallowed Grounds (PAHG) to record Midland Cemtery in Swatara, PA . The goal of this pilot project was to document a cemetery using PAC’s membership and archaeological methods that could then be applied to other cemeteries with similar needs.
October is Archaeology Month, so today let’s talk about a key part of identifying archaeological sites: geoarchaeology and geomorphology.
October is Pennsylvania Archaeology Month! Every October, events and programs are held across Pennsylvania to celebrate the commonwealth’s deep past.
Earlier this week my Alexa reminded me that there are 100 days until the end of the year. After a moment of shock, my brain started its mental cataloguing of all the things that I have to do before December 31. Deadlines, appointments, holidays, the list goes on…
One reminder I’d like to put on your to-do list before the year is out is to tell us about a preservation success story in your community. Each year PA SHPO selects a few of these stories for a Community Initiative Award.
This summer I had the privilege of being a Keystone Intern for the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office. As a SHPO intern, I was part of the Archaeology Historic Preservation team housed within Environmental Review. Through this internship I got to experience the innerworkings of the PA Preservation system and how invaluable the SHPO’s work is to historic sites across Pennsylvania through site visits with the PA SHPO staff and other PHMC interns.
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.
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.
Back in October 2023, we shared a blog highlighting the updates to the Hardyston Jasper District that PA SHPO archaeologists were working on. These updates included reevaluating our PASS data to create and formally designate the NPS/Keeper Eligible Hardyston Jasper District, refine the district’s boundaries from the boundary established in the 1988 report by Anthony and Roberts, and identifying and evaluating sites for inclusion in the Hardyston Jasper District.
Spring is around the corner, and long-requested updates to Surveyor Manager functionality are the among the first new blooms of the season!
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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