Pennsylvania Historic Preservation

Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office

Category: Berks (Page 3 of 4)

Wiley’s Bridge is located along Bowers Road in Berks County. Public interest has spurred talks of preservation for this rare Whipple Through Truss bridge. Courtesy of historicbridges.org. Used by permission of Nathan Holth.

Bridge to the Past: PennDOT’s Historic Metal Truss Bridge Management Plan

March 15, 2017 / / 7 Comments

In June 2016, I was hired as the Transportation Special Initiatives Coordinator in the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO).  This new position was created through a special funding agreement with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and was developed to assist them in marketing the state’s historic metal truss bridges. My position has evolved over the last 9 months and I see my purpose as helping both PennDOT and the SHPO preserve the remaining population of historic metal truss bridges by either marketing them for an adaptive reuse at a new location or helping to develop and implement a management plan to rehabilitate these bridges as part of the transportation system. Continue reading

November’s SHPO Shout Out!

November 30, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Tis the season to be thankful – after all, Thanksgiving was just last week and more holidays are just around the corner – and I for one have been rattling off a list of all the great places in Pennsylvania that I am thankful for and appreciate.  The SHPO Shout Out, which, btw, turns 1 year old this month, was intended to send out a big thank you in celebration of all the great people and projects that preserve Pennsylvania’s history everyday.  Thank you for all you do to help preserve, protect, and promote Pennsylvania’s historic places and spaces!  Read on to see who gets a Shout Out Thank You this month.  Make sure to let me know who else we should be thanking and recognizing! Continue reading

Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Tax Credit Year 3 Recap

August 10, 2016 / / 3 Comments

Due to Fiscal Year 2015-2016 budget challenges, the status of Year 3 of Pennsylvania’s Historic Preservation Tax Credit program was up in the air through March 2016.  With the enactment of a budget, there was a brief application window with a March 24, 2016 deadline. The shortened budget period did impact the total number of applications to the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) as the total decreased from 30 in the second round to 23 applications for the third round.

PHMC quickly reviewed the applications to ensure applicants owned qualified historic buildings and that proposed rehabilitation plans met the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation.  As the qualified applications far exceed the limited $3 million in available credits, DCED used a fair and balanced selection process based on a first -come, first serve basis with regional distribution to select the first round of projects.  Continue reading

Workers with tunnel lining. Image from Borough of Catasauqua website: http://www.catasauqua.org/things-to-do/walking-tours-industrial/davies-thomas-co

New Historical Markers Approved

March 23, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Great news for fans of Pennsylvania’s beloved blue and gold markers – there are going to be more of them soon!  At the March 9th meeting, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission recently approved 23 new historical markers.  Many of the marker applications and approvals were from Philadelphia County this year so we’re anxious to get some great nominations next year for subjects of statewide and/or national significance in Pennsylvania’s other 66 counties!  The Marker Program encourages broad distribution, so individuals and organizations from across the commonwealth are encouraged to research their history and develop nominations for people, places, events, and innovations in their own area.  We know there is more history out there to share!

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#FindYourPark: Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site

March 2, 2016 / / 3 Comments

We have probably all visited places or done things in our childhood that we’ve long since forgotten, and certainly didn’t appreciate the significance of it until much later in life.  Thinking about the National Park Service’s Centennial and the #FindYourPark campaign recently brought back a memory of visiting Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site with my parents when I was a kid.  I couldn’t have known it at the time, but I’m beginning to realize that a fun little day trip many years ago helped to pique my interest in and appreciation for historic places in ways that changed my life. Continue reading

Just Listed: Recent Additions to the National Register of Historic Places

March 11, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Just Listed is a semi-annual feature of Pennsylvania’s cultural resources that were recently listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Since our last Just Listed post, 27 resources from all corners of the Commonwealth have been listed in the National Register of Historic Places.  You can explore these and other historic properties in Pennsylvania via CRGIS, our online map and database. Continue reading

Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Awards: The Case of the Missing Pachyderms and the Marvel of a Brand-New Old Ceiling

October 8, 2014 / / 0 Comments
Paul Heberling, center, accepts the F. Otto Haas Award from John A. Martine, right, and Peter Benton. Top right, Mayor Salvatore Panto, Bottom right, The Society to Preserve the Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka

Paul Heberling, center, accepts the F. Otto Haas Award from John A. Martine, right, and Peter Benton. Top right, Mayor Salvatore Panto, Bottom right, The Society to Preserve the Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka

Each year, Preservation Pennsylvania presents the Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Awards as a way to honor individuals and organizations that exhibit excellence in the field of historic preservation. The 2014 award recipients exemplify some of the core values of historic preservation, such as a community pulling together to save a building from demolition or the revitalization of an urban neighborhood thanks to rehabilitation – not razing — of an aging school.

“Partnerships, cooperation, and taking the long-term view are themes that run through many of this year’s projects,” said Mindy Crawford, Executive Director of Preservation Pennsylvania, the statewide historic preservation nonprofit. “Whether at the local, state or federal level, this year’s award recipients demonstrate how people working together can create positive change.” Continue reading

Shippensburg University’s restored Old Main Fountain will receive a Construction Project Award for Public & Institutional Properties at the Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Awards luncheon in Pottstown on Friday, September 27.
Old Main Fountain. Shippensburg University’s restored Old Main Fountain will receive a Construction Project Award for Public & Institutional Properties at the Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Awards luncheon in Pottstown on Friday, September 27.

Help Celebrate Success at the Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Awards

August 14, 2013 / / 0 Comments
Photo: Shippensburg University’s restored Old Main Fountain will receive a Construction Project Award for Public & Institutional Properties at the Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Awards luncheon in Pottstown on Friday, September 27.

by Erin Hammerstedt, Preservation Pennsylvania

Earlier this summer Preservation Pennsylvania, along with the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission and our other partners, announced the recipients of the 2013 Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Awards.   Presented annually since 1979, the awards honor impressive historic preservation projects and  inspiring commitment to preserving and protecting Pennsylvania’s rich historic resources.  We want to highlight just a few of the 2013 recipients and invite you to join the celebration by attending the awards ceremony and luncheon on September 27 in Pottstown, Montgomery County.

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