Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office
by Mike Piaskowski, Pennsylvania Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources
As Pennsylvanians, we are beyond fortunate to live in a place rich with heritage. Our ridges, valleys, plateaus and waterways lured natives and settlers alike to bountiful opportunities and un-imaginable challenges. Continue reading
By. Dr. Sally McMurry
The term “gray literature” well conveys the level of visibility for much work done at agencies like the Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Office. Historic Structures Reports, National Register nominations, exhibits, and drawings may have limited long-term public exposure even though they are often based on high-quality research and analysis. The Vernacular Architecture Forum (VAF) has recognized that these efforts often make exemplary contributions to our understanding of the built environment, and the organization honors such work through the Paul E. Buchanan Award. VAF spokesman Michael Chiarappa has characterized the award as a “testament to VAF’s commitment to civic engagement and the idea that broad participation in the study and understanding of vernacular landscapes provides an indispensible social good.” We are proud to announce that the Pennsylvania Agricultural History Project is the 2013 winner. Continue reading
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.
Many months of planning and meetings have culminated in the August 2013 re-launch of the Cultural Resources Geographic Information System (CRGIS). Continue reading
by Brenda Barrett
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in the Living Landscape Observer and appears here with the permission of the author and founder of that publication, Brenda Barrett. We appreciate Brenda’s contributions and reporting on this subject.
Oley Valley gristmill. Credit: Zachary Pyle.
Even in a state famous for its agricultural landscapes, the Oley Valley in southeast Pennsylvania is an exceptional place. Located in a in a bowl-shaped valley flanked by the forested hills of the Reading Prong and underlain by limestone, the region is drained by two small creeks, the Manataway and the smaller Monocacy. English Quakers, French Huguenots, and Palatine farmers from Switzerland and Germany settled in the valley as early as 1725 in search of religious freedom and good farmland. They found both, producing an 18th-century pattern of farmsteads, fields, and villages that has marked the landscape ever since. Continue reading
In the past five years since Marcellus shale drilling has started, the pace of archaeological survey in the northern tier and the western counties has increased sharply. Continue reading
Almost every archaeologist I know has heard this question from somebody from the general public: “How do you know where to dig?” Although it used to give me a facial tic after hearing it over and over, it’s actually not a bad question.
Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, federal agencies must consider the effect of their projects on historic properties which are defined as resources listed in or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. It is the role of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office to participate in consultation with the federal agency to seek ways to avoid or minimize adverse effects of projects on historic properties.
The April 2013 edition of The Burg featured an article about a coalition of dedicated volunteers with a mission to preserve Harrisburg’s historic black churches. The author attended a local training program led by Partners for Sacred Places where he learned how these historically significant buildings can serve a larger role in neighborhood revitalization.
On Saturday, April 27, 2013, I had the pleasure of attending and speaking at a unique dedication ceremony at Fort Halifax Park in Halifax Township, Dauphin County, just north of the Borough of Halifax. The ceremony was to dedicate numerous London Plane Sycamores recently planted to, if you’re feeling poetic, fix what time has wrought. You see, these trees were planted to replace missing Sycamores in the National Register of Historic Places-listed Legislative Route 1 Sycamore Allee (see the nomination on CRGIS for more information and for references). Continue reading
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