Category: Westmoreland (Page 1 of 3)

Mitigation Spotlight: Section 106 Agreements, January – June 2024

July 17, 2024 / Emma Diehl / 0 Comments

This is part of a biannual blog series highlighting the agreement documents executed by PA SHPO in accordance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act and its implementing regulations.

Between January 1 and June 30, 2024, PA SHPO has been a signatory to approximately ten (10) Section 106 agreement documents with five different federal agencies as part of consultation for the resolution of adverse effects to historic properties.

One story white frame building with steep roof.

Baseline Survey Adds Almost 8,000 Places in Year 3

March 13, 2024 / Guest Contributor / 1 Comment

The Pennsylvania Baseline Survey Team is thrilled to share the final year of findings from the Pennsylvania Baseline Survey. From June 2022 to March 2024, Year 3 of the Baseline Survey took place in 20 counties. To date, over 6,854 new resources have been recorded in 503 municipalities thanks to the efforts of our Baseline Survey Teams!

Aerial view of archaeology dig with excavation squares, exposed stones, plywood borders, and people and tools. — Field school excavations in progress around one of the stone hearth foundations uncovered at Fort Halifax (36DA0008).

A Trip Through the PASS: The 2023 Annual PASS Report

February 21, 2024 / Taylor Napoleon / 1 Comment

Now that 2023 is officially in the PASS, let’s look back on another successful year of archaeological site recording and survey efforts throughout Pennsylvania.

Line drawing showing a collection of shelters surrounded by a fence. — Drawing of "The Indian Fort Sasquesahanok" in Pennsylvania from Herman Moll's 1720 map of North America.

Highlights of Pennsylvania Archaeology

November 22, 2023 / Shelby Weaver Splain / 1 Comment

November is Native American Heritage Month. The month is a time to celebrate rich and diverse cultures, traditions, and histories and to acknowledge the important contributions of Native people. One of the ways to learn about Native American heritage in Pennsylvania is through archaeology.

Preservation Happening With Keystone Grants

June 14, 2023 / Karen Arnold / 0 Comments

New preservation projects will be sprouting up across Pennsylvania this summer. PHMC’s preservation partners will start 48 new projects with the assistance of the Keystone Historic Preservation Grant program in the coming months.

Historic Buildings Key to Economic Development Success: Deindustrialized Communities Market Study Final Report

July 25, 2022 / Shelby Weaver Splain / 0 Comments

PA SHPO is pleased to share the final report for the Deindustrialized Communities Market Study (DCMS).

Stone building with slides sloped to top in a wooded and grassy area. — Caledonia Iron Furnace monument at Caledonia State Park. Photo by Angie Jaillet-Wentling.

Exploring African American Heritage in Pennsylvania’s DCNR Parks and Forests

June 15, 2022 / Guest Contributor / 1 Comment

Pennsylvania is rife in human history – if you’re in Pennsylvania, consider yourself surrounded with nearly 20,000 years of it! So, it should come as no great surprise that its 121-state park and over 2 million-acre forest system, administered by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, are steeped in both natural and human history.

Large stone bank building with five large windows at an intersection. — The First National Bank building on Brighton Avenue in Rochester, a key historic resource analyzed in this study. Built in 1907, the Romanesque Revival style building has a unique shape to conform to its angled corner lot. Photo date:18 March 2022. Source: evolve environment::architecture.

Deindustrialized Communities Market Study: What We Learned

March 30, 2022 / Guest Contributor / 1 Comment

As we wrote about in a recent blog post, the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO) has been working on a huge project in our western region, aimed at identifying the challenges and opportunities for historic preservation and economic revitalization in smaller deindustrialized communities, focusing on twelve riverfront municipalities located within two regions of Southwestern Pennsylvania.

Row of commercial buildings along a street. — Buildings on Merchant Street in Ambridge, PA. Many of the study area main streets have continuous street frontages where the character of the main street isn’t broken up by vacant parcels. Continuous street frontages allow for a greater density of small businesses that can make main streets more vibrant. Photo date: 15 February 2022. Source: evolve environment::architecture.

Deindustrialized Communities Market Study

March 9, 2022 / Guest Contributor / 3 Comments

The Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO) has undertaken a project to investigate the economic development and community revitalization prospects in specific southwestern Pennsylvania communities that have experienced significant de-industrialization.

View looing across the Susquehanna River showing river and bordering woods. — PARW017 (36DA0283) as seen from a bridge over the Susquehanna River during an October sunrise. Three Mile Island is visible in the background. Photograph by Frederick Mayhew, 2021.

A Look at the PASS Year: The 2021 Annual PASS Report

February 9, 2022 / Taylor Napoleon / 0 Comments

It’s that time of the year again! Time to report and reflect on another successful year of archaeological site recording efforts throughout Pennsylvania. In 2021, over 300 new archaeological sites were recorded by cultural resource management (CRM) projects, independent and university research projects, Society of Pennsylvania Archaeology (SPA) members, and long-time avocational archaeologist.