Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office

Category: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Page 1 of 2)

Preservation Planning through Mitigation in Western PA

In spring of 2015, the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE), the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO), Shell Chemical Appalachia, LLC (applicant) and the Seneca Nation of Indians (SNI) concluded consultation after 18 months of discussions under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act about the construction of a petrochemical complex in Beaver County along the Ohio River.

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The Cornplanter Grant: The Last Native American Settlement in Pennsylvania

Deep in the forests of northwestern Pennsylvania lies a little-known, but incredibly important part of our Country’s early history and our Native American past.  Although now mostly covered by the waters of the Allegheny Reservoir (a body of water created when the Army Corps of Engineers dammed the Allegheny River with the Kinzua Dam in 1965), this land, the Cornplanter Grant, has a very important story to tell. Continue reading

Hazard Mitigation in a Historic Context: Update on Historic At-Risk Properties Initiative

Historic resources inform citizens of their unique local heritage, cultural identity, and the origins of their community.  They are the corner stones of our built environment and they provide a “sense of place”. In the aftermath of a disaster, these buildings, structures, objects, and sites are often associated with the very memories and connections that a community needs to begin to rebuild. Continue reading

The Governor’s Pipeline Infrastructure Task Force 2015-2016

In May of 2015, Governor Tom Wolf appointed 48 people to serve on the newly-created Governor’s Pipeline Infrastructure Task Force, which was charged with creating a set of recommendations for responsibly guiding the extraction and transportation of natural gas in Pennsylvania. The purpose of the recommendations was to suggest best practices that would avoid or lessen environmental, community and cultural resources impacts and address safety issues.  Below is the who, what, when, where, and how of this task force, the PA SHPO’s role, and the group’s accomplishments.

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Disaster Planning for Historic Properties in a World Heritage City

by Emily Paulus Everett, AECOM Technical Services

On November 6, 2015, the City of Philadelphia became the first United States city to join the Organization of World Heritage Cities – a prestigious designation that recognizes, among other things, its vast and significant collection of well-preserved historic resources. That same week, representatives from the PA SHPO, US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management, and AECOM Technical Services, Inc. gathered in Center City, Philadelphia to kick off Phase 1 of a two-phase effort to protect those historic resources before, during, and in the aftermath of, future flooding events.  As part of the PA SHPO’s Disaster Planning for Historic Properties Initiative, Philadelphia County joins Monroe, Bedford, and Cameron as one of four pilot counties to take into account the impact of future flooding events on historic properties.   Continue reading

Saltsburg Or Bust!

This past June Barbara Frederick and I were in Saltsburg, Indiana County attending a stakeholder meeting for the Loyahanna and Conemaugh Dam’s master planning process. The Army Corps of Engineers, Pittsburgh District has been hard at work this summer updating their planning documents, and, as the Western Region Section 106 review team, Barbara and I have been doing our part to provide our support to their process. We also used the opportunity to get a first-hand look at the Dams, Saltsburg, and some really great historic resources!  Continue reading

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