Earlier this month, PA SHPO staff made their annual trek to Washington, D.C. to meet with other SHPOs and preservationists from across the country as part of National Historic Preservation Advocacy Week.
Category: Historic Preservation (Page 1 of 47)
Queue the Jeopardy! music…
If you answered “PA SHPO’s Annual Report,” you’re correct!
Two Black men, Edenborough Smith and John Harshberger appear in the 1850 census on tracts of land now situated in Laurel Ridge State Park overlooking Johnstown’s West End. From at least the 1820s, and possibly as early as the turn of the 19th century, Smith, Harshberger and their families lived in a community of Black, White, and Indigenous people that has been referred to as the Laurel Hill Settlement, Brown Farm and “the Mountain.” Eight generations lived on the Mountain until the property was claimed by the state in 1967.
On July 4, 2026, the United States will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Second Continental Congress’ adoption of the Declaration of Independence.
My favorite authors are those who write about travel. I’m attracted to books that not only transport me to another place, but also another time.
You’re probably wondering what this postcard has to do with PA SHPO and historic preservation, let alone New Year’s or 2025. I came across this gem while searching the PA State Archives digital collections for images that I could use for a New Year’s Day blog post.
Is it even the end of a year if you don’t see at least a dozen “year in review” lists?
(… Or is it?)
As 2024 winds down and all the social media platforms and streaming services summarize and wrap-up the year, the Pennsylvania Above Ground Survey (PAGS) program has the opportunity publish its BASELINE WRAPPED for 2020-2024.
Baseline Wrapped is going to summarize the changes in technology, highlight certain municipalities, provide some numbers, and even hint at what’s to come next..!
Since its inception thirty years ago, PHMC’s Keystone Historic Preservation Grant program has supported a variety of historic places, from barns to bridges to buildings. I recently had the opportunity to tour some grant projects in Pittsburgh’s local park system.
Frequently, PA SHPO staff receive inquiries regarding a homeowner’s historic property and their wish to list it in the National Register of Historic Places.
Many times, interesting family stories passed down from one generation to the next are tied to the property. As fascinating as most of the stories are, not all will hit the threshold of the National Park Service required criteria to qualify the property as significant at the local, state or national level.
However, before the level of review needed to make that call, there are numerous documents and items that PA SHPO staff need to verify the eligibility of a resource. Unfortunately, since there is a degree of deeper research required and the process may seem daunting, many homeowners stop after the first phone call or email.
Hopefully, this post about the Determination of Eligibility process and next week’s post about what we need to evaluate a historic resource will help make it all seem a little less scary.
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