recent past recon - Preservation Idaho

Transcription

The
ALLIANCE
R
EVIEW
July-August 2008
NEWS from the NATIONAL ALLIANCE of PRESERVATION COMMISSIONS
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Jeanne Lambin
Janine Duncan
The Recent Past is Groovy:
Researching American
Architectural Styles after
WWII
RECENT PAST RECON
Jim Peters
Chicago Style: Conducting a
Windshield Survey of
the Recent Past
John Sprinkle
Local and Less than Fifty:
Applying Criterion
Exception G to Locally
Significant Historic Properties
Katherine Seale
Discover Dallas! Gets Modern
Jeanne Lambin
The Uber Recent Past
Resource Guide
...and IN EVERY ISSUE:
Heads Up!
State News
2008 Board of
Directors:
National Alliance of Preservation Commissions
Ann McGlone, Chair
Dir. of Community Devpt, City of Alamo Heights
6116 Broadway
San Antonio, TX 78209
Phone: 210-832-2244
Fax: 210-822-8197
amcglone@alamoheightstx.gov
Dan Corson, Secretary
Colorado Historical Society
1300 Broadway
Denver, CO 80203
Phone: 303-866-2673
dan.corson@chs.state.co.us
Boyd Maher, Program Committee Chair
Arkansas Heritage
323 Center St. #1600
Little Rock, AR 72201
Phone: 501-324-9665
boyd@arkansasheritage.org
Ms. Marty McCune, Chair Elect
Skylark Consulting
1527 East Painted Colt Loop
Tucson, AZ 85719
Phone: 520-437-5355
triplem8@cox.net
Stephen Stowell, Board Devpmt Comm. Chair
Lowell Historic Board
J.F.K. Civic Center, 50 Arcand Drive
Lowell, MA 01852
Phone: 978-446-7200
sstowell@ci.lowell.ma.us
Shanon Wasielewski, Treasurer
City of Franklin Planning Department
316 South Margin Street
Franklin, TN 36064
Phone: 615-550-6733
shanonw@franklin-gov.com
Robin Beckett
New Canaan Historic District Commission
1271 Oenoke Ridge Road
New Canaan, CT 06840
Phone: 646-256-8500
rombeckett@aol.com
Eddie Bello
City of Charleston
Dir. of Urban Design and Preservation Division
75 Calhoun St
Charleston, SC 29403
Phone: 843-724-3783
belloe@ci.charleston.sc.us
Toni Cherry
District of Columbia Historic
Preservation Office
801 N. Capitol Street, N.E., Suite 3000
Washington, D.C. 20002
Phone: 202-442-8800
Toni.Cherry@dc.gov
Jeff Cronin
City of Pasadena
Planning and Development
175 North Garfield Avenue
Pasadena, CA 91101
Phone: 626-744-3757
jcronin@cityofpasadena.net
Nicole Diehlmann
Maryland Historical Trust
100 Community Place
Crownsville, MD 21032
Phone: 410-514-7625
ndiehlmann@mdp.state.md.us
Roxanne Eflin
Preservation Planning Associates
56 Joy Valley Rd
Buxton, ME 04093
Phone: 207-929-5630
RoxanneEflin@yahoo.com
Bruce Judd, FAIA
Architectural Resources Group
Pier 9, The Embarcadero
San Francisco, CA 94111
Phone: 415-421-1680
bruce@argsf.com
Brian Goeken,
Commission on Chicago Landmarks
33 N. LaSalle Street, Ste. 1600
Chicago, IL 60602
Phone: 312-744-3201
bgoeken@cityofchicago.org
Jeanne Lambin
Savannah College of Art and Design
Historic Preservation Program
P.O. Box 3146
Savannah, GA 31402
912-525-6914
jlambin@scad.edu
Jo Ramsay Leimenstoll
Director of Graduate Studies
UNCG Dept. of Interior Architecture
P.O. Box 26170
Greensboro, NC 27402-6170
Phone: 336-256-0303
jrleimen@uncg.edu
Reuben McKnight
Tacoma Landmarks Preservation Commission
747 Market St., Room 900
Tacoma, WA 98402
Phone: 253-591-5220
reuben.mcknight@gmail.com
Paige Pollard
Commonwealth Preservation Group
PO Box 4266
Suffolk, VA 23439
Phone: 757-923-1900
paige@commonwealthpreservationgroup.com
David Preziosi
Mississippi Heritage Trust
P.O. Box 577
Jackson, MS 39205
Phone: 601-354-0200
david@mississippiheritage.com
James K. Reap
Dean Rusk Center-International, Comparative and
Graduate Legal Studies
1111 Settlers Ridge Road
Athens, GA 30606
Phone: 706-546-1409
jreap@mindspring.com
Catherine Gorman Tinnemeyer
City of Galveston
Planning Department
P.O. Box 779
Galveston, TX 77553
Phone: 409-797-3660
tinnemeyercat@cityofgalveston.org
Robert Vogel
Pathfinder CRM, LLC
319 South Division Avenue
P.O. Box 503
Spring Grove, MN 55974-0503
Phone: 507-498-3810
rcvogel@springgrove.coop
Christopher J. Wand
The Durrant Group, Inc.
700 Locust St., Suite 942
P.O. Box 509
Dubuque, IA 52004-0509
Phone: 563-583-9131
cwand@durrant.com
NAPC helps build strong local preservation programs through education, training, and advocacy.
National Alliance Staff at the Center for Community Design and Preservation at
the College of Environment and Design, University of Georgia
Pratt Cassity, Director
Contact the NAPC at:
Program Coordinator
Editor
Support Staff
Support Staff
2
Drane Wilkinson
Kay Stanton
Nathan Bevil
Kimberly Kooles
drane@uga.edu
okayo@bellsouth.net
napc@uga.edu
napc@uga.edu
706-542-0169
FAX:706-583-0320
napc@uga.edu
www.uga.edu/napc
Recent Past Recon
RECONCILING WITH THE
RECENT PAST
Drane Wilkinson, NAPC Program Coordinator
Four years ago, when NAPC last addressed recent past preservation in The Alliance
Review, many local preservation commissions were asking whether they should
survey and designate post-War resources, whether they were worthy of the same
degree of protection as those from the early twentieth century and before, and whether
their protection would somehow compromise the integrity of the community’s overall
preservation program. Now, as awareness and appreciation of post-War resources
have grown, and as mid century neighborhoods have come under increasing threat
of teardowns and McMansion encroachment; more commissions are asking how to
preserve post-War resources than are asking whether they should. Commissions
addressing post-War resources face an assortment of challenges.
Lack of a standardized nomenclature is one of the most often cited difficulties. Many,
if not most, post-War architectural styles are not included in most survey manuals and
survey forms; or when they are included, regional differences often mean that the
same resource would be called by different names in different parts of the country. To
quote one commission staff person who called the NAPC office recently, “I’d be happy
to survey the stuff, I just don’t know what to call it, and when I go to my books, I get four
different answers.” The diversity of post-War architecture makes finding a consistent
nomenclature particularly challenging.
Another challenge is having the capacity to address such a large number of resources.
The sheer volume of post-War resources potentially eligible for local designation is
staggering due to the huge building boom that followed World War Two and continued
well into the 1960s. Commissions struggling to maintain their existing surveys and
to survey threatened pre-War districts may find it hard to justify the time and money
required to survey resources many people regard as insignificant or disposable.
Making the case for saving a something when only a few examples remain is generally
easier than when hundreds or thousands cover the landscape. Creative solutions
can be found, however, and post-War resources can be surveyed, designated, and
saved. Technological advances, such as GIS and GPS mapping capabilities, along
with more complete records from the period of construction can be utilized to make
surveying more efficient. Through partnerships with local non-profit organizations using
volunteers to conduct surveys, preservation commissions are continuing preservation’s
proud tradition as a grassroots movement.
The clarity of hindsight has shown us that we need to act now to protect post-War
resources. If we wait until we are certain they are important, it will probably be too late.
Fortunately, we have learned from our mistakes and local preservation commissions
around the country are reconciling with the recent past.
Jul-Aug 2008
3
Recent Past Recon
THE RECENT PAST IS GROOVY
RESEARCHING AMERICAN ARCHITECTURAL STYLES AFTER WWII
Jeanne Lambin, Preservation faculty, Savannah College of Art and Design
Janine L. Duncan, Preservation Planner, UGA Grounds Department
What is the “recent past”?
Recent – “Having lately come into existence; new, fresh”1
Past – “Having existed or taken place in a period before the present”2
Recent Past – “…building[s] and structures from the twentieth century...[which] embody the aspirations, priorities, challenges and successes of our recent history.”3
A review of more newly-minted style names, from Wrightian to Basement House, collected from recent historic resource surveys reveals that the recent past is coming into
its own, but the process is slow-going: a centralized, national source for recent past
styles did not exist. Until now. The purpose of the Naming Names project was to utilize the resources available to NAPC to review historic resource surveys and other resources to create a comprehensive inventory of existing style names used to describe
the architecture of our more recent past, make that inventory readily accessible to the
public and expand on it over time. NAPC was well poised to act as a clearinghouse for
the data because of its wide, national audience.
Because with each passing year a new group of resources cross the magical “fifty
year”4 threshold, every year a new group of resources is eligible for local designation or
National Register listing; and the cut-off date for the recent past is continually shifting.
For the purposes of this research project the period 1945 - 2007 was selected because
it reflected: 1) the post-World War II housing shortage and building boom; 2) the rise
of the United States on the world economic stage and the resulting corporate building
boom; 3) the backlash against many mid-to-late 20th century styles; and 4) the current
growing appreciation of 20th century architecture.
Methodology
The project was divided into phases in order to make it easy to digest. The first phase
of the project was to conduct a cursory survey of existing style names listed in popular
style guides including: the National Register classifications; A Field Guide to American
Houses, by Virginia and Lee McAlester; American Shelter by Lester R. Walker; the Visual Dictionary of American Domestic Architecture by Rachel Carley, Ed Skibinski and
Ed Lam; A Field Guide to Contemporary Architecture by Carole Rifkind, and Historic
Homes of Phoenix by the City of Phoenix, Arizona. Fifty-three style names were identified. A chart was created showing the period (when available) for each style, and a
description (especially helpful when one style-name overlapped with another) and bibliographic references. This rudimentary chart served as the basis for the spreadsheet
(see Figure 1) that was created to collect data in the second phase: research.
Many state historic preservation offices (SHPOs) post their survey manuals online. Online searches and library websites proved helpful, especially for accessing college and
university department or student projects and theses; historic district designation surveys; and historic or preservation society projects. Many design guideline documents
can be found online through the Hubert B. Owens Library5 website. Owens Library is
housed at the College of Environment and Design at the University of Georgia, and is
a research center for the school’s Historic Preservation and Landscape Architecture
programs. Thousands of design guidelines from across the U.S. are available at Owens, and both online and print documents were reviewed for this project. Documents
4
Recent Past Recon
reviewed included: municipality, historic district, architectural district, and county design guidelines; zoning and/or development standards; preservation ordinances; and
SHPO architectural survey manuals. Over 1,000 resources were reviewed between
April and June 2007 at NAPC offices in Athens, Georgia.
As a new recent past style was discovered, a column was created for the resource in the
spreadsheet, and the style added as a line item (Figure 1). An image of the style was
obtained, if possible (Figure 5). The volume of entries demanded that the spreadsheet
be divided into regions, and for simplicity the regions6 used by the National Trust for
Historic Preservation were used as a starting point. The style, description, image and
annotation were added to a glossary, or picture dictionary, as well. The glossary proved
to be a very worthwhile document because it allowed us to distinguish, for example, one
community’s Commercial from another community’s Commercial–Highway Strip.
Figure 1: Excerpt from master data
collection spreadsheet for Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California, Hawaii
and Alaska. The styles visible (far left
column, top to bottom) are 19th-20th
Century Revival, Log Kit and MidCentury Modern. An “X” was placed
in a column if a style was found in a
particular resource (see “Minimal Traditional” – San Diego). Pertinent information was added to the spreadsheet
if a style was listed in a resource by
another name (see “Colonial Revival”
in 19th-20th Century Revival row for
the Oakhill/Brewster Historic District
Design Guidelines - Petaluma, CA.)
courtesy of the author
Figure 2: Excerpt from the glossary.
The definition of Classical Revival is
used by Riverside, CA
courtesy of the author
The third phase of the project was data analysis. One hundred fifty-nine (159) new architectural styles were recorded for the period 1945 - 2007. It quickly became apparent
that the styles must be organized into categories in order to create the distribution map (Figure 3). Six categories were created and each was assigned a color for mapping purposes:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Mid- to Late-20th c. Styles (ex: Ranch – WWII Era Cottage)
Commercial (ex: Commercial Store Front)
Revivals (ex: Second Renaissance Revival; Colonial Revival)
Regional Styles (ex: North Coastal; Basement House)
19th & early 20th c. Styles (ex: Art Deco; Shotgun)
Other
Jul-Aug 2008
5
Recent Past Recon
It must be noted that the absence of data on the map (ex: North Dakota) does not
mean that resources do not exist for a city or state. Rather it means that resources
could not be located during the research phase, or that the existing resources—because of the date they were written—did not include styles after 1945.
The final project phase was the creation of nomenclature. The purpose of the nomenclature was to consolidate all of the style names into one list and create an
understandable abbreviation for each. An attempt was made to provide enough flexibility with the abbreviations so that the list could be expanded over time (Figure 4).
Now I see Ozark Giraffe everywhere…
Surprises arise during any research project and this one was no exception. The first
surprise was the sheer number of already existing styles and types classified under
the heading of “recent past.” Beaux Arts, Shotgun, and Art Deco were not expected
to be included in post-World War
II architecture; however, communities which saw a building boom
in a particular style or the development of suburbs using “older”
architectural styles tended to classify 19th and early 20th century architectural styles as part of their
recent past.
The rich variety of regional styles
was the second surprise. From
Workman’s Shack in Monterey,
California to Border Vernacular in
Laredo, Texas to German Vernacular Revival in Hagerstown, Maryland, the sheer number of regional
styles and the language used to
describe them is rich and varied.
Local variety was affected by the
history of a community, state or
region. For example, California
heavily emphasizes substyles for
Ranch, while Santa Fe focuses
its substyles on Spanish Colonial
and “southwestern” architectural
forms. Ozark Giraffe, Structural Aesthetics and Machine-Cut House may not be
easy to visualize until one is seen, but who could forget those style names? The rich
descriptive words used for some styles can initially confuse or they can conjure a
romantic picture in our mind’s eye (think Seaside House and Mountain Chalet).
In the end, the “recent past” is more than Brutalism, Googie, or the (often) all-encompassing International. It is a quilt of high-style and vernacular; of regional variants
which incorporate ethnic tradition or stern practicality. There is more to the recent
past than meets the eye.
6
Recent Past Recon
Naming Names is part of an on-going effort of
the NAPC to assist commissions throughout
the country in their efforts to survey, evaluate, designate and build understanding and
appreciation for the architecture of our more
recent heritage. Additional information about
the effort will be presented at the NAPC Forum in New Orleans and will also be available on the NAPC website. Stay tuned for the
standardized survey form!
1
Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 10th edition,
Merriam-Webster Incorporated, Springfield, MA (1994).
2
Ibid.
3
Recent Past Architecture and Preservation, www.cttrust.
org, Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation (2008).
4
As demonstrated in John Sprinkle’s article, resources
younger than fifty years old can be listed on the National
Register if they are of exceptional significance at the national, state or local level. Many commissions impose similar
age restrictions, without any exceptions, thus fifty year has
become the benchmark for many people and the guideline
for when a property can be evaluated for its potential significance.
5
Design Guidelines, Hubert B. Owens Library, www.sed.uga.edu/facilities/owenslibrary/designguidelines.htm,
School of Environmental Design, University of Georgia (2008).
6
Regional and Field Offices, www.preservationnation.org/about-us/regional-offices/, National Trust for Historic Preservation (2008).
Figure 5: “Ozark Giraffe” Eureka Springs, AR Historic
District Guidelines
Courtesy of the author.
Jul-Aug 2008
7
Recent Past Recon
CHICAGO STYLE
CONDUCTING A WINDSHIELD SURVEY OF THE RECENT PAST
Jim Peters, Director of Planning and Advocacy, Landmarks Illinois
Despite all the attention the “recent past” has received,
a major challenge remains. How do you decide which
recent-vintage structures actually merit preservation?
A huge number of our nation’s Post
World War II structures have never
been inventoried or evaluated
Photo courtesy of the author.
Many statewide historic building surveys were conducted in the late-1970s and early-1980s, soon after the passage of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA)
of 1966. Most of these surveys were conducted by the
State Historic Preservation Office, as mandated by the
Act. However, because of the so-called “50-year-rule”
for National Register eligibility, and a similar restriction
on local designation, only a few of these surveys included buildings constructed since the 1940s. Indeed,
many early surveys stopped at the 1910s or 1920s, well
shy of the fifty-year mark. As a result, a huge number
of our nation’s Post World War II structures have never
been inventoried or evaluated. This survey deficit is
particularly true in the suburban communities surrounding urban centers, such as Chicago. Many of these areas, that were sleepy burgs before World War II, mushroomed after the war. Very few of these communities
have inventoried historic resources—apart from structures dating to early settlement.
Meanwhile, the rate of change in these communities continues to be quite rapid, particularly among recent-past commercial structures along major arterial streets.
To address this group of buildings, Landmarks Illinois (a statewide preservation advocacy group) and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago’s Graduate Program in
Historic Preservation (SAIC) have teamed up on a multiyear effort to survey recent
past non-residential architecture in the Chicago metropolitan area. During the fall semesters of 2006 and 2007—as part of a preservation planning studio for second-year
master’s degree students—more than two dozen communities were surveyed, encompassing nearly 1,500 documented properties.
Based on our experience from the first two years of the Chicago Area Recent Past Survey,
here are some “lessons learned” that might be useful to those considering a similar effort.
8
•
Focus on a manageable goal. While the concept of a region-wide survey is mindboggling (an estimated 10 years), the effort has been greatly simplified by focusing
only on non-residential structures. Residential surveys of individual properties can
be far more time consuming and more difficult to do than windshield overviews of
commercial properties. They also involve greater public outreach and dealings with
local officials. Furthermore, in most of the communities surveyed, the greatest demolition threats involve non-residential properties, such as retail centers and small
office and industrial buildings.
•
Nothing like a great map. Even with the widespread use of GPS navigation
devices, a series of good maps is critical for survey fieldwork—and in outlining
the project scope. The more detailed the better, including at least one map that
identifies schools, religious structures, public buildings, and shopping centers. This
information is especially critical given the confusing—and ever-changing—boundaries of suburban communities. We also found school district maps and zoning maps
helpful in identifying concentrations of survey objects1
Recent Past Recon
•
Advance research. Architectural publications from the period—including regional architectural magazines—help identify many significant recent past structures so that surveyors can look for them in the
field. We also found the historic ProQuest files on our local newspaper to be extremely useful after a structure is identified.2 We had assumed that local building permits would be helpful, but we found that
many communities have discarded permits from this period. Although
local historical societies often preserve “historic” building permits
from the late-18th and early-20th centuries, seldom has there been a
comparable effort to conserve mid-to-late 20th century permits. 3
•
Drive, don’t walk. These types of surveys demand a lot of driving,
given the far-reaching nature of suburban development. Over the
first two years, our survey teams drove a total of 4,200 miles—
roughly the distance from Chicago to Honolulu. Students were reimbursed for mileage, but this approach still required the use of
private automobiles. Each car included three or four surveyors: the
driver (who often doubled as the site investigator), a navigator/photographer, and the data entry person.4
•
Time saving technology. Computers and digital cameras have
revolutionized architectural survey work. Rather than using handheld devices (which tend to get outdated quickly and require central server links), we used laptop computers and an Excel data
base. We structured our survey forms, maps, and data base to be
readily importable into Landmarks Illinois’ existing website (www.
Landmarks.org), so that we easily could put the information online. Tip: Short battery lives mean that most survey teams also
used power adaptors for the car or—during lunchtime breaks—for charging at local restaurants (“Could I have a seat by an outlet, please?”). Spare batteries and
memory cards are essential for cameras.
•
The better the photograph… The architectural significance of many buildings from the recent past is
best revealed by dramatic photographs of the structure and its details. In order to build support from
community residents—many of whom do not fully appreciate this period of architecture—the photograph
needs to “sell” the building. Simple documentation is
not enough. We impressed this fact on the students
with photography seminars and chose those students
with the best photography skills.
•
Stick to a schedule. The beauty of a class survey
exercise is its predictability. Our class met one day
a week, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Half of the semester (seven weeks) was spent doing field survey
work. The rest of the time was divided between
pre-survey research and finalizing survey results.
The downside of this arrangement, of course, is
that when the semester ends, the project ends. So
the scope of work has to be structured to ensure
there are no un-surveyed gaps.
Technology like laptops and
digital cameras can really
save time in surveys.
Photos courtesy of the author
Jul-Aug 2008
9
Recent Past Recon
• Go inside. Go inside. Go inside. With many historic
surveys, the tales recounted by property owners can often
be suspect—i.e., how many stops on the Underground
Railroad can there really be? But in the case of recent past
structures, many of the original owners—or immediate descendants—often still occupy the building. Occasionally
the original renderings or drawings may still be hanging
on the wall or are in someone’s files. The one instance
where we often avoided further on-site investigations was
with schools, especially in light of security concerns about
student safety.
• Architectural terms? What architectural terms?
Although some efforts have been made to develop common terms for recent past styles, we did not believe these
lists were appropriate for our survey. Consequently, the
surveyors did not categorize styles or types, although they did develop a list of different roof shapes. After a couple more years of survey work, we hope to create a
glossary of styles for subsequent review by an independent committee of professionals.5
Get as much information on a
buiding by going inside, but
always make safety first priority
Photo courtesy of the author.
•
Keeping costs down. Even though student labor is “free,” there are some costs
associated with this type of survey work. The initial year of the project was partially
covered by a grant from the Kohler Intervention Fund of the National Trust for Historic
Preservation. Subsequent expenses, like gasoline and website design, were funded by
Landmarks Illinois. Additional grants are being sought to defray future survey costs.
•
Publicize the results. In addition to the survey data base, our recen past survey
website also features “slide shows” of representative buildings from each community, as well as various building types and architectural details. Press releases have
been sent out to village managers, planning directors, and local historical societies.
In addition, feature articles about the survey have appeared in local newspapers and
architectural publications. For complete details on the survey process itself, check
out the survey methodology section at: www.landmarksil.org/recentpastsurvey.htm.
As one can imagine, the scope of the Chicago Area Recent Past Survey project is
monumental. The Chicago metropolitan area encompasses seven different counties
and hundreds of communities. We estimate that the effort will take a decade to complete, provided funding and staff resources continue to be available, but, with each
year of survey effort, the task becomes smoother and more efficient.
Jim Peters, AICP, is the director of preservation planning for Landmarks Illinois and an adjunct professor
at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the University of Illinois-Chicago. He previously was the
Deputy Commissioner for Landmarks at the Chicago Department of Planning and Development.
1
Many of the communities are now utilizing GIS (Graphic Information Systems) to guide their survey work
For more information on how GIS can be used in historic resources, see “Postwar Modern Housing and a
Geographic Information System Study of Scottsdale Subdivisions” on the City of Scottsdale website at:
http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/historiczoning/neighborhoods.asp.
2
ProQuest, which has archived all the newspaper articles and advertisements in the Chicago Tribune. The archival sources for the various architectural publications referenced was the Burnham Library at the Art Institute.
3
Although many cities now have permits on microfilm or, increasingly, digitized and available on-line during the course
of the survey no communities were located that had their permits on-line, in fact, many had disposed of older permits.
4
Data fields included: historic Use/Name, Current Use/Name, Est. Date of Construction, Exact Construction
Date, Date Research, Rating, Roof Form, Primary Material, Secondary Material, Noteworthy (Classification),
Features, Major Alterations/Additions, Additions, Noteworthy Site Features, Noteworthy Landscape Features,
Sign Type, Sign Materials, Architect/Builder, Surveyors, Date Surveyed, Notes, Permit Info.
5
For more information on terminology see “The Recent Past is Groovy: Researching American Architectural
Styles after WWII in this issue as well as the “Recent Past Resource Guide” also in this issue for links to communities that are pioneering the naming process.
10
Recent Past Recon
LOCAL AND LESS THAN FIFTY: APPLYING CRITERION
EXCEPTION G TO LOCALLY SIGNIFICANT HISTORIC PROPERTIES
John Sprinkle Jr.1, National Park Service
Editor’s Note: As local preservation commissions find themselves having to evaluate the
significance of resources that are less than fifty years old they are often at a loss for how to
evaluate them. National Register of Historic Places Criterion G, while intended for National
Register nominations, provides useful information that can serve to frame a local preservation commission’s evaluation process.
One of the most often cited principals in the American historic preservation movement is National Register Criterion Exception G, also known as the fifty year rule: “a
property achieving significance within the last fifty years is eligible if it is of exceptional
importance.”2 The concept of local significance was one of the creative advancements
of the National Register of Historic Places in 1966: “the importance of a property to
the history of a community, such as a town or county.”3 Adding the terms “local” and
“exceptional” to the concept of “significance” creates an equation that represents a
growing challenge for historic preservation commissions across the United States.
Local significance functions as a geographic boundary, while the fifty year rule is a
chronological threshold that, taken together, shape the historic contexts that can be
used to frame evaluations of National Register eligibility.
What is the Fifty Year Rule?
Contrary to what we were taught in “Historic Preservation 101,” that the so-called fifty year rule was actually
established with the expansion of the National Register
in 1966, the “longevity test” was adopted by the National
Park Service in 1948 as part of its criteria for the evaluation of nationally significant historic sites. This chronological line was used in combination with the so-called
“twenty five year rule,” that says individuals must be dead
for at least a quarter century before their contributions
to American history can be adequately evaluated, in order to avoid perennial pressure from politicians and civic
boosters seeking governmental recognition, and to avoid
potentially “controversial,” that is to say, recent history.
Articulated as National Register Criterion Consideration
G and elucidated in a periodically revised National Register Bulletin properties executing the fifty year rule automatically trigger substantive review of proposed National
Register nominations by National Park Service staff.5
What is Local Significance?
To paraphrase the old saying about politics, in the end, “all preservation is local.” While
the level of significance indicated on the National Register form represents the opinion
of the nominating authority, usually a State Historic Preservation Office, establishing local significance depends on the definition of local historical contexts, for “it is within the
larger picture of a community’s history that local significance becomes apparent.” Developing the appropriate historical context begins with answering the question: “What
is local?” The simplest definition could include the corporate limits of the local political jurisdiction, but for larger cities, suburban counties, or rural areas, local may also
mean a neighborhood, a subdivision, or a river valley. In considering properties from
the recent past, “it is especially critical to identify the properties in a geographical area”
CItizen’s State Bank, Oklahoma
Photo: National Register of
Historic Places
Jul-Aug 2008
11
Recent Past Recon
in order to “determine those that best
illustrate or represent the architectural,
cultural, or historical values being considered.” Defining local significance is
handicapped by a lack of local historical studies. Sites with state or national
significance “usually require less documentation than a property associated
with a commonplace local event...
about which little is written.”6
Holmes Run Acres Historic Distreic,
Virginia
Photo: National Register
of Historic Places
In Alexandria, Virginia, a determination
of eligibility by the Keeper of the National Register from 1999 helps to illustrate issues regarding the definition
of local significance. Under discussion
was the potential significance of Hunting Terrace, an eight building garden
style apartment complex built in 19411942 to address area housing needs
during World War II. Focusing on the
project’s “quality, size, and complexity of design” and its association with notable architects and planners, the Keeper’s determination compared Hunting Terrace to other
National Register listed garden apartment communities in Northern Virginia, not just
those within Alexandria’s political jurisdiction. In this case, the Keeper relied on the
precedent established by previously listed garden apartment complexes within a larger
region because of the lack of a locally based historic context in which to evaluate the
qualities of Hunting Terrace.7 Thus, it is important for local preservation commissions
to understand the scope of National Register listings that are locally significant and
achieved significance within the past half-century.
Locally and Considerationally Important
National Register Listings
From 2000 to 2008, 185 historic properties were listed
in the National Register as having local significance
and meeting Criterion Exception G.8 Historic properties were listed in 40 states, with Alabama registering
the most properties (n=18) principally because of a multiple property nomination on the history of Civil Rights
in Birmingham. Other states with 10 or more considerationally important and locally significant listings include
Missouri and Colorado (14 each),Tennessee (13), and
Georgia and North Carolina (10 each). The nominations
included 15 historic districts, 11 schools, 8 houses, and
a variety of other properties such as parks (4), offices
(3), and hospitals (2). Also represented were a stadium,
a garden, a farm, a museum, a theater and a bank.
Holmes Run Acres Historic Distreic,
Virginia
Photo: National Register
of Historic Places
12
Examples taken from these National Register listed properties illustrates trends in the
documentation of locally significant properties that are less than fifty years old. These
include a hotel listed under Criterion A for its association with the civil rights movement;
Recent Past Recon
a suburban residential development, that exhibits modern concepts
of architectural design and planning; a futuristic bank building; an
example of drive-in culture in a rural setting; and two residences:
one representing the culmination of an architect’s career, and one in
which an architect housed his own family. Many of these properties
were listed only a few years short of the fifty year threshold.9
• Spud Drive-In Theater, Idaho: Built in 1953, the Spud Drive-in
was listed in the National Register under Criterion A for its association with recreational culture in this remote and sparsely settled
section of Idaho. Although the documentation included recognition by Joe Bob Briggs, a drive-in movie critic and advocate, the
considerational importance of this site rests with its local conveyance of mid-twentieth century drive-in culture.
• Holmes Run Acres Historic District, Virginia: Listed under Criterion C for its signficance in architecture and community planning,
Holmes Run Acres comprises 291 contributing buildings in a planned
community that was mostly developed from 1951 to 1955. Criterion
Consideration G was recorded on the nomination because 19 houses
were constructed in 1958, thus completing the development.
• Citizens State Bank, Oklahoma: Incorporating a large geodesic
dome as its principal design feature, this Oklahoma City bank is
considerationally important as a trend setting “ultra modern” building that reflects the post World War II marketing of financial institutions. Built in 1958, the bank was listed in the National Register
in 2003. Documentation used to support its considerational importance noted the rarity of geodesic dome usage in Oklahoma.
The dome’s importance also included its icon status as a geographic reference
point—of way-finding within the city—that is common among distinctive architectural designs.
Spud Drive-In, Idaho
Photo: National Register of
Historic Places
• Tidewater Inn, Maryland: Built in 1949 and incorporating a 1954 addition, Easton’s
Tidewater Inn is a locally significant colonial revival styled hotel, restaurant and
community gathering place that was listed under Criterion A and C in 2007. The
site derives additional significance for its association with African American protests
over segregated public accommodations during the early 1960s. In 1963, national
press coverage documented peaceful conclusions to a series of locally and nationally organized challenges to segregated accommodations at the Tidewater Inn.
This outcome was in sharp contrast to contemporary violent confrontations in the
nearby town of Cambridge, Maryland.
• Brooks House, Washington: Built in 1956 and listed in 2004, the Brooks House is
locally significant as an early modernist work of the well respected architect Kenneth
Brooks. Recognized with an AIA Award of Merit, this home presents an innovative, inward looking plan that includes a 1963 addition. This home “served as both a living experiment for the architect’s evolving design theories and as a showcase for his work.” 10
• Goldsmith House, Oregon: Completed in 1959, this residence, designed by Herman Brookman, was listed under Criterion C in 2007. “Significant as the architect’s
Jul-Aug 2008
13
Recent Past Recon
last major residential commission, the house reflects both Brookman’s important
contributions to shaping the Northwest Regional style in Portland and the culmination of his prolific local career.”11
For a variety of reasons, a general concern for “modern” historic places has grown during the last two decades within the practice of historic preservation in the United States,
where professionals and concerned citizens alike have “been more willing to plumb the
recent past.”12 In recent years, the apparent conflict of values between professional or
academic perspectives and that held by local citizens regarding evaluations of historic
site significance have been highlighted.13 Evaluating locally significant and less than
fifty year old properties continues to present challenges because the historic preservation community generally has less time, less space, and less documentation on which
to base the evaluation of a property’s importance. Nevertheless, as the list of recent
National Register nominations indicates, there is ample room within the nation’s official
list of places worthy of historic preservation for properties that represent the locally
significant recent past.
1
John H. Sprinkle, Jr. serves on the Historical Restoration and Preservation Commission in Alexandria, Virginia.
He holds a doctorate in history from the College of William and Mary and is employed by the National Park Service’s Federal Preservation Institute. The views and conclusions in this essay are those of the author and should
not be interpreted as representing the opinions or policies of the National Park Service or the U.S. Government.
2
National Register Criterion Consideration G. Marcella Sherfy and W. Ray Luce, Guidelines for Evaluating and
Nominating Properties that have Achieved Significance within the Past Fifty Years, National Register of Historic
Places, revised 1996, pg. 17.
3
National Park Service, How to Complete the National Register Registration Form, 1998, Appendix IV:2
4
For example see: “Baby Boom for National Register Eligibility” Facts for Feds, December 2007, National Park
Service, Federal Preservation Institute. “The Shifting Signposts of Significance,” Deborah Edge Abele and Grady
Gammage, Jr., Arizona State University, 2000 posted at http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/recentpast/signpostsarticle.htm, accessed May 15, 2008
5
National Register Criterion Consideration G. Marcella Sherfy and W. Ray Luce, Guidelines for Evaluating and Nominating Properties that have Achieved Significance within the Past Fifty Years, National Register of Historic Places,
revised 1996. John H. Sprinkle, Jr., “‘Of Considerational Importance,” The Origins of the “Fifty-Year Rule” in Historic
Preservation,” The Public Historian, Volume 29, No. 2 (Spring 2007), pp. 81-104. Interestingly, the “twenty-five year
rule” was not adopted as a concept by the National Park Service as it established the National Register in the 1960s.
6
How to Complete the National Register Registration Form, pp. 4 & 50. Guidelines for Evaluating and Nominating Properties that have Achieved Significance within the Past Fifty Years, revised 1996, pg. 3.
7
Hunting Terrace Apartments Determination of Eligibility, National Park Service, 1999.
8
National Register Information System, April 2008. This figure represents all properties listed with Criterion
Consideration G and only the local level of significance. During this period, 17 more locally significant properties
were listed under Consideration G, with the addition of either state or national significance recommended by the
nominating authority.
9
In fact, many of the properties that are associated with events, persons, or trends in recent American history
are recognized at the national level of significance. For example, see National Historic Landmark designations
for the Stonewall Riots (New York) or Bethel Baptist Church (Alabama).
10
Lusignan, Paul R., “Evaluation/Return Sheet: Kenneth and Edna Brooks House,” National Park Service, 2004.
11
Lusignan, Paul R., “Evaluation/Return Sheet: Alan and Barbara Goldsmith House,” National Park Service, 2007.
12
Diane Barthel, “Historic Preservation: A Comparative Analysis,” Sociological Forum, Vol. 4, No. 1 (March
1989), pg. 99. Longstreth, Richard, “The Significance of the Recent Past,” APT Bulletin, Vol. 23, No. 2 (1991), pp.
12-24. Cultural Resources from the Recent Past, CRM, Vol. 16, No. 6 (1993). Preserving the Recent Past, CRM,
Vol. 18, No. 8. (1995). Preserving the Recent Past, Conference Proceedings, Chicago, 1995 and Preserving the
Recent Past 2, Conference Proceedings, Philadelphia, 2000. Also see the National Park Service’s recent past
initiative at http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/recentpast/
13
Some of the recent studies include: Spennemann, Dirk H.R., Michael Lockwood, and Kellie Harris, “The Eye
of the Professional vs. the Opinion of the Community.” CRM, No. 2, 2001, pg. 16-18; Brookstein, Mark D., “When
History is History: Maxwell Street, “Integrity,” and the Failure of Historic Preservation Law.” Chicago-Kent Law
Review, Vol. 76, (2001), pp. 1847-1885; Coeterier, J.F., “Lay People’s Evaluation of Historic Sites,” Landscape
and Urban Planning 59 (2002), pp. 111-123; and Kling, Robert W., Charles F. Revier, and Karin Sable, “Estimating
the Public Good Value of Preserving a Local Landmark: The Role of Non-substitutability and Citizen Information,”
Urban Studies, Vol. 41, No. 10, (September 2004), pp. 2025-2041.
14
Details
ONE DAY
Commission Assistance and
Mentoring Program
Remember summer
camp?
You had fun, made friends,
and learned things you
never thought possible
while the counselors did
all the work! NAPC’s
Commission Assistance
and Mentoring Program
(CAMP) works just the
same way.
It’s an intensive,
high-energy program
customized to meet your training needs.
Nationally recognized CAMP counselors drawn
from local preservation programs across the
country provide the highest quality training in an
atmosphere of camaraderie and celebration.
One Day CAMP features three nationally
recognized experts and focuses on preservation commission fundamentals that every
commission member should understand.
The customized curriculum includes Legal
Issues, Standards and Guidelines, and two
additional topics from the CAMP Menu.
Costs: $2,500 + speaker expenses +
$55/participant
DAY AND A HALF
The customized Day and a Half CAMP
curriculum includes preservation commission fundamentals and builds upon them
to explore more topics in greater detail.
Four nationally recognized experts explore
Legal Issues, Standards and Guidelines
and four additional topics from the CAMP
Menu.
Costs: $3,500 + speaker expenses +
$55/participant
Every CAMP is built around NAPC’s four-point
curriculum:
• The legal framework of local preservation
• Identifying and protecting historic resources
• The commission’s role and responsibility
• Public support and outreach
UPCOMING CAMPS
9 Aug
22 & 23 Aug
12 Sep
19 Sep
11 Oct
12 Jan ‘09
6 Feb ‘09
Alexandria, Louisiana
Crown Point, Indiana
Augusta, Maine
Franklin, Tennessee
Aberdeen, South Dakota
Granbury, Texas
Denver, Colorado
Call or write NAPC at 706-542-4731 or napc@uga.edu for more details about
hosting a CAMP...We’ll be glad to come pitch our tent at your CAMP site!
15
Recent Past Recon
DISCOVER DALLAS!
GETS MODERN
Katherine Seale, Executive Director, Preservation Dallas
Like many local preservation organizations, Preservation Dallas’ first architectural
survey, conducted in the late 1970s, documented a small collection of high style
resources—in this case Victorian houses. Ten years later, the organization surveyed
the city’s central business district and documentation of historic neighborhoods within
the city soon followed. While documentation of these historic resources was critical
to the City and to Preservation Dallas, the information was of little use to the public.
Furthermore, the survey data quickly became out of date. Frustrated by the inaccessibility and underuse of the information, Preservation Dallas set out to create a new
kind of survey in 2001.
Preservation Dallas envisioned this new survey as a vital tool for raising public awareness about the value of the city’s historic resources while collecting new and updating
existing survey data. In an effort to create a survey that would have immediate and
lasting results, the information would be stored in an electronic, searchable, online
database complete with a property location mapping system.
Aptly named Discover Dallas!, the survey is an entire program that encourages Dallas residents to become stewards of the city’s historic resources by documenting their
own neighborhoods. Residents are trained and supervised by Preservation Dallas
staff to survey their own neighborhoods by conducting field reports, researching property histories, photographing resources and then logging the results from any online
connection. Professional teams audit the survey data before it goes online.
Organized by neighborhood, each survey form is posted along with a history of the
neighborhood. In addition, the database incorporates Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and property tax data of all surveyed sites. The database is easily updated and revised.
At the conclusion of each neighborhood survey, a neighborhood charrette is conducted. During these charrettes, Preservation Dallas leads a team of volunteer architects,
city staff and neighborhood residents through a three hour exercise in which a large
map of the area is used to discuss land use characteristics, urban detail, housing
characteristics and existing resources. The goal of the charrette is to identify future
plans for the neighborhood; and may include any number of public improvements,
stronger neighborhood identity, and local historic or conservation designation. Notes
from the charrette as well as all survey materials are presented to the neighborhood
through public meetings.
Discover Dallas! Gets Modern
By the late 1990s/early 2000s, Dallas had become ground zero for teardowns; the
National Trust for Historic Preservation ranked it one of the worst of any major city
in the country. Dallas’ significant growth after World War II produced one of the
largest concentrations of modern architecture in the Southwest, including a wealth
of architect-designed mid-century modern buildings. And while the teardown trend
was affecting historic neighborhoods across the city, postwar resources faced an
even greater risk of demolition. As in most cities, Dallas’s modern resources were, for
the most part, unrecognized and underappreciated. In response, Preservation Dallas
requested and received funding from the Texas Historical Commission to initiate a
survey of Post World War II architecture within the city.
16
Recent Past Recon
In Phase I of the post-World War II survey, Preservation Dallas documented 600 commercial and institutional buildings, as well as multifamily units, and selected single-family residences. In surveying
these properties, Preservation Dallas discovered a growing number
of mid-20th century neighborhoods, and their associated commercial
and institutional centers, compromised by insensitive alterations,
neglect and demolitions.
Phase II was initiated to examine two of these threatened neighborhoods, Northwood Hills and Midway Hills. While at the time both
neighborhoods were nearly entirely intact, new, incompatible construction was encroaching. The neighborhoods were also selected
for representing different expressions of 1950s suburban planning.
Northwood Hills was laid out as an upper middle class single family
ranch neighborhood organized around a golf course and country club. The streets
were laid wide and curvy to follow the natural hilly topography with sprawling ranch
houses were stretched across large lots. The houses represent nearly a dozen different styles of ranch homes.
The Rhapsody House,
1116 Pinocchio Drive,
Thomas Scott Dean, architect.
Photo courtesy of the author
In contrast, Midway Hills was developed as a series of additions. The neighborhood
grew as small farms belonging to some of Dallas’ pioneer families were bought and
developed. The developers laid out the streets in a strict grid pattern. Trees were
planted up to the streets, and no sidewalks or front walkways were laid. As a result of
the large expanses of green yards and shaded streets, the neighborhood possesses
a park-like atmosphere. The houses in Midway Hills are mostly traditional ranch
homes with a few Contemporary designed homes interspersed. Well known local architects as well as the
California builder Cliff May designed several houses in
the neighborhood. When Midway Hills opened in the
mid 1950s, it was featured in Dallas’ 1954 and 1955
Parade of Homes. Sponsored by the Dallas Home
Builders Association, the Parade of Homes was a
week-long tour that showcased various new additions
and model houses offering the latest styles and modern conveniences.
During Phase II, volunteers surveyed, researched and
photographed approximately 546 properties. Resources were documented on Discover Dallas! survey forms
and images of streetscapes and exterior facades were
captured using high-resolution digital cameras. Each
property was researched at the Dallas Public Library
for a date of construction, the builder or architect’s
name, and the name(s) of the first resident. The property’s number of stories, floor
area ratio, and major alterations were also recorded using data from the property tax
appraisal database. In addition, GIS maps were created for each neighborhood. The
shapefile for each neighborhood includes building footprints for each property and
attribute tables include construction dates, architectural styles, street addresses, and
property zoning information.
11232 Pinocchio Drive,
Cliff May design
Photo courtesy of the author
At the completion of the surveys, Preservation Dallas continued to work with residents. A planning charrette and several public meetings took place in Midway Hills.
Armed with a better understanding and appreciation for their neighborhood, the resiJul-Aug 2008
17
Recent Past Recon
dents of Midway Hills are now contemplating local conservation district status and
may pursue a listing on the National Register of Historic Places. (For more information about conservation districts as distinct from historic districts, see “Neighborhood
Conservation districts” by Julia Miller in the November/December 2003 issue of The
Alliance Review.)
Discover Dallas! has been an incredibly successful tool for educating residents on the
importance and historic context of their neighborhoods. In many cases, the survey
information has been used in conservation or historic district applications. In addition,
it has helped Preservation Dallas identify the common and unique characteristics of
post-World War II housing developments and evaluate resources for potential designation as locally protected districts or listings on the National Register of Historic
Places. To date, Preservation Dallas has trained more than 500 volunteers to help
document Dallas’ historic resources.
For more information, please visit the Preservation Dallas website at
www.preservationdallas.org and click on Discover Dallas survey.
8TH ANNUAL NEW PARTNERS FOR SMART GROWTH CONFERENCE:
Building Safe, Healthy and Livable Communities
January 22-24 – Albuquerque, NM
The New Partners for Smart Growth Conference has grown significantly since it began several years ago
- increasing in scope, attendance, and prestige - and is now considered to be the “premier” smart growth
conference held each year. The strength of this conference comes from the experience of participants and
speakers who cross disciplines to share insights, valuable tools and strategies that encourage smart growth
implementation and “getting it done.”
The vibrant city of Albuquerque, in the heart of New Mexico’s ‘land of enchantment’ is the perfect setting for
this year’s event. Known to many as the ‘Duke City’, Albuquerque can be viewed as a crossroads city, trying
to balance future challenges with the desire to preserve centuries of cultural heritage. The city is a perfect
laboratory for the potential of smart growth to enhance the cultural, environmental and economic fabric of
the city and state. Sitting at the intersection of Interstates 25 and 40, the region stands on the verge of rapid
growth. The new “green-tech” and film industries emerging in the local economy compliment the legacy of
high-tech capital flowing from Intel and the Sandia National Laboratory in nearby Rio Rancho.
The program will span three full days. There will be pre-conference tours scheduled for Wednesday, January
21st, but the main program will kick-off on Thursday morning, January 22 nd and continue through Saturday
afternoon. The three-day schedule includes a dynamic mix of plenaries, breakouts, implementation workshops, specialized trainings, peer-to-peer learning opportunities and coordinated networking activities. It will
also feature exciting tours of local projects in the Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Taos areas, and many other
interesting case studies from throughout the region.
There will be something for everybody, from veteran experts to smart-growth novices, with over 100 sessions and workshops. Learn from hundreds of speakers to help make smart growth a success in your community.
Plan to join us, and others, from across the U.S. next January for the smart growth event of the year! Visit
www.NewPartners.org to get more conference details and to register for the conference!
18
Recent Past Recon
CONGRATULATIONS
NAPC FORUM 2008 SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS!
Thanks to the generosity of our Chair’s and Founder’s Circle members, NAPC
is able to provide limited scholarship assistance to students who want to participate in the National Commission Forum. Forum scholars receive a range
of assistance depending on the strength of their application. Call or write
NAPC at 706-542-4731 or napc@uga.edu for information about how you can
support the Forum Scholars program.
2008 Forum Scholars
John Forman:
John is pursuing a master’s degree in Geography with a focus on urban planning at Texas State University, San Marcos. He has completed his coursework
and is researching and writing his thesis on the subject of new urbanism and
preservation. After serving an internship with the City of San Marcos, John
was hired by the city as its Preservation Officer and serves as the Planning
Department’s representative to the San Marcos Historic Preservation commission.
Brian Heffron:
Brian is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in history with a minor in business communication from Middle Tennessee State University. He served
as an intern with the City of Franklin, Tennessee’s Planning Department
and is currently working at the Herkimer House state Historic Site in Little
Falls, New York.
Laura Lavernia:
Laura is pursuing a Master of Arts degree in historic preservation through
the Savannah College of Art and Design’s online degree program. She
is currently serving as a special projects assistant with the Historic Preservation Section of the City of Miami, Florida’s Planning department while conducting thesis
research on preservation strategies for the Miami Bungalow.
Tricia Nelson:
Tricia is pursuing a Master’s degree in historic preservation through the Savannah College
of Art and Design’s online degree program. Tricia’s professional background is in the paralegal teaching profession; and she brings extensive grassroots preservation experience to her
studies, having formed a local historical society and advocated for cemetery preservation in
her home county.
E. Nicole Stutts:
Nicole is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in historic preservation from the Savannah College of Art and design. She is currently obtaining hands-on preservation experience in restoration masonry at the Fort Pulaski National Monument and hopes to work in downtown
revitalization after completing her degree.
Mathew Welker:
Mathew is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in historic preservation from the Savannah College of Art and design. He has worked as a docent at the Davenport House and Museum, and
plans to pursue LEED certification as part of his preservation studies.
Jul-Aug 2008
19
Recent Past Recon
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS/APPLICATIONS
NAPC BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The National Alliance of Preservation Commissions (NAPC) is soliciting Nominations/Applications for membership
on its Board of Directors. The Board is comprised of present and former members and staff of local historic preservation/landmark commissions and architectural review boards throughout the United States. These individuals are
NAPC’s direct link to the national network of more than 3,000 preservation commissions.
The NAPC is a private, non-profit 501(C) (3) corporation established in 1983 and is dedicated to helping build strong
preservation programs through education, advocacy, and training. The NAPC is committed to having an ethnically,
culturally, geographically, and professionally diverse board to meet the needs and challenges facing local commissions in the 21st century. The organization draws from the expertise, experience, and energy of its board members
to provide timely and meaningful technical support and information to local preservation stakeholders. Areas of
expertise currently needed include organizational development, preservation law, fundraising, and public relations/
marketing. Board members are expected to be individual members of NAPC and make financial contributions to
the organization as well as actively serve on committees and attend board meetings. The NAPC provides non-profit
directors and officers liability insurance for members of its Board of Directors.
Please forward this announcement to individuals within your state that meet the above criteria. The organization’s
nominating committee will evaluate Nominations/Applications. The committee’s recommendations will be made and
acted upon at NAPC’s meeting in October in Tulsa, Oklahoma in conjunction with the National Historic Preservation Conference. Nominations/Applications must be postmarked no later than 1 September 2008 to be considered.
Please submit Nominations/Applications to:
NAPC Nominations/Applications
P.O. Box 1605
Athens, GA 30606
napc@uga.edu
Nomination Requirements
• Nominations/Applications must be postmarked no later than 1 September 2008 to be considered.
• Incomplete Nominations/Applications will not be considered.
Nominations/Applications must include the following:
Cover letter stating the following:
• Name, occupation, address, phone, fax and e-mail.
• The population of community over which your commission has jurisdiction.
• The name of your commission and the capacity in which you serve it and dates of service including
when your current term expires if applicable.
• A brief statement describing your interest in serving on the Board of Directors.
Current Résumé or Curriculum Vitae containing at least the following information.
• Academic background—schools attended, degrees earned and dates.
• Any professional certifications.
• Professional experience.
• List any awards and/or publications you have received/written.
20
Recent Past Recon
THE UBER RECENT PAST
RESOURCE GUIDE
Compiled by Jeanne Lambin
Recent years have witnessed an astonishing increase in the number and quality websites and publications relating to
the architecture of the recent past, documenting everything from Howard Johnson’s Restaurants (http://www.hojoland.
homestead.com/index.html) to drive-in movie theaters (http://www.driveintheater.com/index.htm). This guide is by no
means exhaustive, rather it is intended to serve as a starting point for those interested in understanding, documenting,
surveying, evaluating, preserving and pondering the recent past. This guide was compiled by: Jeanne Lambin. Please
send any suggestions and/or comments to Jeanne Lambin at jeanne_lambin@yahoo.com.
GENERAL:
• Richard Longstreth’s annually updated, A Historical Bibliography of Architecture Landscape and Urbanism
in the United States Since World War II. Available for download at: http://www.recentpast.org/bibliography/index2003.html. This is a veritable treasure trove of information.
• Cultural Resource Management, Vol. 18, no.8, Preserving the Recent Past. Interesting range of articles. Available
for download at: http://crm.cr.nps.gov/issue.cfm?volume=18&number=08
• Cultural Resource Management, Vol. 16, no.3, Cultural Resources from the Recent Past. Available for download
at: http://crm.cr.nps.gov/issue.cfm?volume=16&number=06
• Lee, Yvonne. “The Dilemma of Listing Modern Buildings,” printed in CONTEXT the official magazine of the UK
based Institute of Historic Building Conservation. It provides news and views on all aspects of building conservation with regular articles by the foremost protagonists in the field. A copy of the article can be downloaded from
http://www.ihbc.org.uk/context_archive/44/Yvonnelee_dir/Yvonnelee_s.htm
• Macdonald, Susan. “20th Century Heritage: Recognition, Protection and Practical Challenges.” From ICOMOS:
World Report, 2002-2003 on Monuments and Sites in Danger. Interesting international perspective on preserving
20th century resources. Available for download at: http://www.international.icomos.org/risk/2002/20th2002.htm
• Schull, Carol and Beth Savage. “From the Glass House to Stonewall: National Register Recognition of the
Recent Past.” Originally presented at the Preserving the Recent Past Conference, Chicago, 1995. Available for
download at: http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/publications/bulletins/01workshop/glasshouses.htm
• Liebs, Chester H., “Remember Our Not-So-Distant Past?” Historic Preservation 30 (Spring 1978), 30-35. Proving that
there is nothing new under the sun, this is an article written thirty years ago on the subject of preserving our not-sodistant past.
• Lambin, Jeanne, Preserving Resources from the Recent Past. Available for purchase on the National Trust website
at www.preservationbooks.org
• National Trust for Historic Preservation Forum Journal, Volume 10, No.1, Fall 1995, Preserving the Recent Past.
Available for purchase on the National Trust website at www.preservationbooks.org
• National Trust for Historic Preservation Forum Journal, Volume 18, No. 4, Summer 2004, Rallying Support for Resources from the Recent Past. Available for purchase on the National Trust website at www.preservationbooks.org
• National Trust for Historic Preservation. Forum Journal, Volume 20, Fall 20005, Preservationists Debate the Recent
Past. Available for purchase on the National Trust website at www.preservationbooks.org
MATERIALS:
• Jester, Tom, editor. Twentieth Century Building Materials: History and Conservation. McGraw-Hill Professional Publishing, 1993. Out-of-print and difficult to find but well worth the effort.
• Macdonald, Susan. Preserving Post-war Heritage: The Care and Conservation of Mid-Twentieth Century
Architecture. Shaftsbury, Donhead Publishing, 2001. First published in 1996. Excellent bibliography for materials
based resources.
• Macdonald, Susan, et al. eds, Preserving Post-war Heritage: The Care and Conservation of Mid-Twentieth
Century Architecture. Shaftsbury, Donhead Publishing, 2007. Order a copy at: http://www.donhead.com/conservation_modern_architecture.htm
Jul-Aug 2008
21
Recent Past Recon
• Preserving Post-war Heritage: The Care and Conservation of Mid-Twentieth Century Architecture. Shaftsbury, Donhead Publishing, 2001. First published in 1996. Excellent bibliography for materials based resources.
• Preservation Brief #12: The Preservation of Historic Structural Pigmented Glass (Vitrolite and Carrara Glass).
Available for download at: http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/briefs/brief12.htm
• Preservation Brief #13: The Repair and Thermal Upgrading of Historic Steel Windows. Available for Download at http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/briefs/brief13.htm
• Preservation Brief #14: Preservation of Historic Concrete Problems and General Approaches. Available for
download at: http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/briefs/brief15.htm
• Preservation Brief #25: The Preservation of Historic Signs. Available for download at: http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/briefs/brief25.htm
TYPES:
Be sure to check out Richard Longstreth’s bibliography, listed under GENERAL, it contains many great sources for
information on specific building types.
THEORY:
• The Notion of Type in Architecture, http://www.salle.url.edu/~madrazo/ethz/phd/introduction/intro.html
ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES:
• 20th Century Archeological Sites and Redundant Resources: Why Should We Identify and Record 20th
Century Resources. http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/publications/bulletins/01workshop/20_century.htm
DOMESTIC:
• Ranch Houses Are All Not the Same, by David Bricker. Available for download at: http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/publications/bulletins/suburbs/Bricker.pdf
• Call It Home, the House that Private Enterprise Built. CALL IT HOME is a laserdisc history of suburbia from
1934-1960. It collects 55 minutes of running footage from government, industrial and educational films with 3000
stills from related official and ephemeral documents. The disc explores the hyper-capitalistic partnership between
the federal government and private enterprise in the 30’s wherein suburban residential fabric became a currency,
an economic indicator, and major U.S. industry not unlike the automobile. This site is composed of stills and text
from the disc. Visit: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/projs/call-it-home/html/
• Historic Residential Suburbs: Guidelines for Evaluation and Documentation for the National Register of
Historic Places. Great “Resources” section. Available for download at: http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/publications/bulletins/suburbs/suburbs-start.htm
• A-Frame. “The Mania For A-Frames.” Informative article on this unique building type by Chad Randl, author of
the book A-Frame. http://www.oldhousejournal.com/magazine/2004/july/aframes.shtml
• “Bright Impertinences”: A History of the Mid-20th Century Plywood Vacation Home Fad” is another great
article by the A-Frame authority. http://www.apawood.org/level_b.cfm?content=pub_ewj_arch_f04_plywood
• Gringeri-Brown, Michele. Atomic Ranch: Design Ideas for Stylish Homes. Gibbs Smith, Salt Lake City, 2006.
Contemporary take on historic building type but also includes information on preservation.
• Atomic Ranch Magazine. Atomic Ranch is a new quarterly devoted to 1940s-1970s ranch homes and tract
homes. As accurately stated on the magazine’s website, “they’re cooler than you think.” Subscription information
can be found at: http://www.atomic-ranch.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc
• Goldstein, Carolyn M., Do It Yourself: Home Improvement in 20th-Century America, Washington: National
Building Museum, and New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1998. Lots of great illustrations.
• Hess, Alan. The Ranch House, Harry Abrams, Inc., New York, 2004. Good overview of the history and evolution
of ranch houses. Lots of illustrations.
COMMERCIAL:
• Shopping Mall History, http://www.easternct.edu/depts/amerst/MallsHistory.htm
As stated on the site, “this page is intended as a starting point for research into shopping mall history, primarily in
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Recent Past Recon
the United States. Many shopping centers maintain their own websites and some include brief historical sketches.
The selected links on this page are primarily to general websites that provide historical overviews. The separate
Bibliography provides leads to additional information about shopping centers and mall history.” Good bibliography
section.
• Dead Malls, http://www.deadmalls.com
Deadmalls.com is a non-for-profit endeavor designed to promote the history of the malls as well as their nature,
whether thriving or declining, and the impact of time and competition on these establishments.
• Did You Bring Bottles: Supermarket History and Architecture, http://www.groceteria.net
This site is a testament to the non-professional preservationist. Thus far in my career, I have encountered only
one endangered supermarket. At the time I didn’t know about this resource. Site author, David Gwynn’s thoughtful
and thorough documentation of a rapidly disappearing building type is an excellent model for a type based survey.
Great photos too.
• Roadside Peek. On-line catalog of Roadside Resources. Search by region and type. http://www.roadsidepeek.
com/
• The Patent Room. Features selected images from original patent drawings filed for diners, gas stations and novelty buildings. Good source to locate drawings, then you can search the United States Government Patent and
Trademark Office website http://www.uspto.gov/patft/index.html and see the full-text and drawings.
• Valentine Diners. http://www.kshs.org/diners/index.htm
Valentines were small diners manufactured in Wichita, Kansas from the late 1930s into the mid-1970s. Sales of the
buildings expanded nationwide, and Valentines soon were all over the United States. The diners often were located
along major highways, and many of them are still in use today. Great example of documenting extant examples of
a specific property type. Lots of great images.
• Jakle, John, and Keith A. Sculle, Fast Food: Roadside Restaurants in the Automobile Age, Baltimore: Johns
Hopkins University Press, 1999.
• Jakle, John, and Keith A. Sculle, The Gas Station in America: Creating the North American Landscape, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1994. Excellent book tracing the history and evolution of the gas station.
Excellent for understanding context.
• Jakle, John, and Keith A. Sculle and Jefferson Rogers, The Motel in America, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University
Press, 1996
• Langdon, Philip, Orange Roofs, Golden Arches: The Architecture of American Chain Restaurants, New York:
Alfred A. Knopf, 1986
• Liebs, Chester, Main Street to Miracle Mile: American Roadside Architecture, 1985, reprint ed., Baltimore:
Johns Hopkins University Press, 1995
• Mattson, Richard, “Store Front Remodeling on Main Street,” Journal of Cultural Geography 3 (Spring-Summer
1983), 41-55
LANDSCAPE:
• Birnbaum, Charles A., “Contemporary Landscape Architecture for Western Living: Preserving and Interpreting an ‘Invisible Legacy’,” Forum Journal 15 (Fall 2000), 48-56
• Birnbaum, Charles A., Preserving Modern Landscape Architecture, Cambridge, Mass.: Spacemaker Press,
1999. Great overview of the preservation of Modern Landscapes. Order from: http://www.tclf.org/pubs_modern.
htm
• Birnbaum, Charles A., Preserving Modern Landscape Architecture II: Making Postwar Landscapes Visible.:
Spacemaker Press, 2004. Order from: http://www.tclf.org/pubs_modern.htm
• Olin, Laurie. Preserve Some, Yes, but also Improve, Add to, and Let Some Go, paper presented at Wave
Hill Conference: Preserving Modern Landscape Architecture & Making Post War Design Visible http://www.tclf.
org/conf_papers/Paper-Olin.doc
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Recent Past Recon
STYLES AND STYLE GUIDES:
Many popular architectural style guides stop at 1940 or thereabouts. If they do cover the postwar period, it is often
cursory. In my humble opinion (and without delving into the debate of type vs. style and other digressions), a singular
useful, definitive comprehensive style guide has not been published. Each of the items listed below have some useful
information or sections which could be useful in helping to identify and describe styles. If you are wresting with style
issues period architecture magazines, trade journals, and popular magazines can be good sources of information.
• Introduction to Postwar Modern Housing Architectural Styles. Brought to you by the city of Scottsdale, Arizona. http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/historiczoning/neighborhoods/pdf/IntroPostwarHousingStyle.pdf
• Hess, Alan, Googie: Fifties Coffee Shop Architecture, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1985
• Melvin, Jeremy. …ISMS: Understanding Architectural Styles, New York, Universe Publishing, c.2000.
• Rifkind, Carol, A Field Guide to American Architecture, New York: New American Library, 1980
• Rifkind, Carol, A Field Guide to Contemporary Architecture, New York: Penguin Group, 1998.
• Walker, Lester, American Shelter: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of the American Home, Woodstock, NY: The
Overlook Press, 1981
HANDYMAN/WOMAN GUIDES:
• Wright, Russel and Mary, Guide to Easier Living, Salt Lake City, UT: Gibbs Smith, 2003 (reprint, originally published 1950)
• Oldham, Todd with Julia Szabo, Handmade Modern: Mid-Century Inspired Products for Your Home. Regan
Books, 2005.
ORGANIZATIONS
There are a number of national organizations which focus on the study, documentation and preservation of underage
resources. Some include:
• NATIONAL TRUST FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION www.nthp.org
The National Trust works at both the regional and national level to preserve the resources from the recent past.
In addition, two of the Trust’s historic sites, Philip Johnson’s Glass House and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House are two of the most iconic examples of Modern architecture. The Trust’s website contains lots of useful information on a variety of subjects ranging from the financial assistance programs of the to , Advocacy. To find
out what is happening in your region or to contact a regional office to discuss a preservation issue, visit http://www.
nationaltrust.org/regional_offices/index.html
• Eleven most, America’s 11 Most Endangered Places is the National Trusts annual program to identify and raise
awareness of historic sites at risk. Since it was established in 1988, more than 200 significant resources have been
listed, including a number of resources from the recent past such as: the Doo-Wop Motels, Wildwood, New Jersey
(2006); the Gold Dome Bank, Oklahoma City (2002); the Guthrie Theatre, Minneapolis (2002); the Cigna Campus,
Bloomfield, Connecticut (2001); TWA Terminal, New York (2003); 2 Columbus Circle (2004). For more information
visit: http://www.nationaltrust.org/11Most
• Glass House, Philip Johnson’s Glass House was a remarkable achievement when it was completed in 1949.
Inspired by the plans of Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House in Illinois, its exterior walls are of glass with no
interior walls touching the exterior, a radical departure from houses of the time. Over the next fifty years a Guest
House, Lake Pavilion, Painting Gallery, Sculpture Gallery, Ghost House, Studio, and Visitors Pavilion—were added
to the landscape. For Tours and ticket info visit, http://www.philipjohnsonglasshouse.org/
• Farnsworth House, Designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe for Edith Farnsworth, and located near Plano, Illinois,
the Farnsworth House, built in 1951, is one of the most famous examples of modernist domestic architecture and
was considered unprecedented in its day. The Farnsworth House is owned by the National Trust and is operated as
a house museum by the Landmarks Illinois The National Trust and Landmarks Illinois — with financial support from
hundreds of contributors including the Friends of the Farnsworth House — were able to purchase the house for
$7.5 million at an auction in 2003. The house is now open for tours. http://www.farnsworthhouse.org/index.htm
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Recent Past Recon
• Recent Past Preservation Network, http://www.recentpast.org
website is an excellent and currently unparalleled website, it could be sub-titled Preserving the Recent Past 101.
The site provides excellent technical information, advocacy assistance, maintains a list of endangered properties,
and has a list-serve for its members. The list-serve is an excellent source of information.
• Society of Architectural Historians, www.sah.org. They usually feature an article about more recent architecture
in their journal.
• DoCoMoMo (Documentation and Conservation of the Modern Movement, www.docomomo_us.com. Both the
US newsletter and International Journal are full of useful articles.
• The Society for the Commercial Archaeology, www.sca-roadside.org. Established in 1977, the SCA is the oldest
national organization devoted to the buildings, artifacts, structures, signs, and symbols of the 20th-century commercial landscape. Great journal. Website features a discussion board for members.
STATEWIDE PRESERVATION ORGANIZATIONS
Many statewide preservation organizations have copious amounts of information on preserving the recent past on
their website. Some, like the Connecticut preservation trust have a short description of resources and a short list of
links.
• Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation: Recent Past Architecture Preservation, http://www.cttrust.org/
d/2004/11/15/7326
• Landmarks Illinois.Check out the fabulous Illinois Initiative on Recent Past Architecture, http://www.landmarks.
org/surveys.htm
STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE WEBSITES
• Colorado Historical Society Office of History and Historic Preservation. The Survey and Inventory section of
their website includes a special section on Post WWII Documents. It is a veritable treasure trove of useful information. Available documents include: the Database of the Denver Area Annual Parade of Homes, Selected Post-WWII
Architectural Styles, Sample Reconnaissance Level Survey Forms, Local Landmark Designation reports and a
PDF of the National Register form for Arapahoe Acres. http://www.coloradohistory-oahp.org/programareas/infoman/pwwII.htm
LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS/HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSIONS
• Check out the list maintained by the Recent Past Preservation Network here: http://www.recentpast.org/research/surveys/index.html
• The L.A. Conservancy Modern Committee, http://www.modcom.org
Their website is a model site for any advocacy based organization. It provides an excellent overview of the basics
of preservation and does an outstanding job linking appreciation with advocacy (which unfortunately some other RP
focused organizations fail to do). It is informative, easy to navigate, and always expanding. Make sure to check out
their reading list which has a staggering array of links.
• Houston Modern Committee Houston Mod is a non-profit, 501(C)(3), membership organization dedicated to promoting knowledge and appreciation of modern architecture and design in Houston and Texas. Houston Mod advocates the preservation of this cultural legacy and seeks support from its members and the general public in achieving
this goal. http://www.houstonmod.org/default.htm
• The Sarasota Architectural Foundation, (SAF) is the outgrowth of “An American Legacy: The Sarasota School of
Architecture Tour and Symposium,” a five-day showcase of Sarasota County’s unique mid-century modern architecture known as the Sarasota School of Architecture. Developed by members of the Fine Arts Society of Sarasota, Inc.
(FASS), the 2001 Tour was attended by over 1,000 design professionals, scholars, and individuals from around the
world, and comprised scholarly lectures, guided bus and boat tours, a documentary, exhibitions and social events. A
core group of Tour organizers subsequently formed SAF to focus on the ongoing preservation and celebration of the
Sarasota School structures, and the promotion of architectural excellence within the Sarasota community. http://www.
safonline.org/about.cfm
• Tuscon Arizona Modern Architecture Preservation Project, http://www.sakellar.com/mapptucson/
• City of Scottsdale, Arizona, Has scads of great information on their website. http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/historiczoning/HistoricResources.asp
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Recent Past Recon
• Modern Phoenix Neighborhood Network. http://www.modernphoenix.net/
OTHER ON-LINE RESOURCES
The web can provide an excellent introduction to preserving the recent past and an outstanding overview of the styles,
types, variety and density of resources out there. If you are not familiar with the architecture of the mid-century, the web
can be a great place to start learning more. For those of you that are more familiar with the architecture of the mid-century, on-line resources can be an excellent source for contextual information and comparative evaluation. For example,
there are a number of sites which feature inventories of certain property types or styles, while other sites that document
the known examples of an architects work. The following is a short list of websites with which to start:
• The National Park Service’s Recent Past Initiative, http://www2.cr.nps.gov/tps/recentpast/index.htm
Buildings from the 20th century are disappearing from the American landscape. While older structures have long
been the focus of popular appreciation and preservation efforts, the value of properties from the recent past has
not been widely embraced. Those interested in ensuring that 20th century places will still be available to future generations have responded by looking anew at the properties that represent this era and finding new ways to protect
them.
• Great Buildings Online, http://www.greatbuildings.com/
Great Buildings Online is considered one of the leading architecture sites on the web. It is a gateway to architecture
around the world and across history. The site documents a thousand buildings and hundreds of leading architects,
with 3D models, photographic images and architectural drawings, commentaries, bibliographies, web links, and
more. This is a great way to locate examples of the work of a known architect in your community. It is searchable by
a number of fields including architect, type, style, location, and construction style. The index includes bibliographic
information including books, articles and on-line resources.
SURVEYS, LISTS, and CONTEXTS
• National Register Bulletin No. 15: How to Apply the National Register Criteria for Evaluation. Available for
download at: http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/publications/bulletins/nrb15/
• Guidelines for Local Surveys: A Basis for Preservation Planning (formerly National Register Bulletin 24). Anne
Derry, H. Ward Jandl, Carol D. Shull, and Jan Thorman; revised by Patricia L. Parker. Guidance for communities, organizations, federal and state agencies, and individuals undertaking surveys of historic resources and incorporating
survey results into planning. 112 pages. 1985. Available for download at http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/publications/bulletins/nrb24/
• Embarking on a survey? Be sure to check out the Recommended Minimum Standards for Identification & Evaluation of Postwar Subdivisions put out by the Colorado Office of Archeaeology and Historic Preservation.
• Charlotte, North Carolina. Final Report: Post World War Two Survey. Site includes images of NR Eligible properties, context statement, very useful typology and list of identifying features of Modernism. http://www.cmhpf.org/surveybytopicworldwar2.htm
•
Eugene, Oregon. Eugene Modernism Context 1935-65 Context Statement, http://www.hp-nw.com/modernism.
htm
• The Philadelphia Chapter Of The American Institute Of Architects A List Of Philadelphia’s Modern Monuments. http://www.brynmawr.edu/iconog/modern.html
• NYC Municipal Art Society’s 30 Under Thirty http://www.mas.org/Advocacy/preservation.cfm?ContID=136&Full
=Yes#Story_136
•
Aurora, Illinois, Preservation of the Recent Past. Includes examples of locally significant buildings, http://www.
aurora-il.org/communitydevelopment/historicpreservation/hist_recentpast.asp
• Making the Case for a Comprehensive Los Angeles Survey, from the Getty Institute: http://www.getty.edu/conservation/publications/pdf_publications/lasurvey.pdf
• Dallas, Texas. Discover Dallas! Historical Resources Survey. http://preservationdallas.org/new_site/survey/
• On the Road, Kentucky’s Roadside Commercial Architecture, 1920-1960, an on-line exhibit sponsored by the
Kentucky Heritage Council. http://www.state.ky.us/agencies/khc/roadside.htm
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Recent Past Recon
•
Raleigh Comprehensive Architectural Survey Final Report. http://www.raleighcitymuseum.org/arch_survey/
Phase2/survey.shtml
•
Field Guide to Gas Stations in Texas. http://www.dot.state.tx.us/publications/environmental_affairs/fieldguide_
gas_stations_.pdf
• Growth, Efficiency and Modernism: GSA Buildings of the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Book detailing the results of a
study by GSA to, “better understand this era of Federal construction within Its context in American architectural history and the history of the Federal public building construction.” Study also created context for evaluating historic
and architectural significance of GSA’s mid-century Modern buildings. Includes great Assessment Tool which details
how to evaluate the buildings using the NR criteria. All 118 pages available for download at: http://www.gsa.gov/gsa/
cm_attachments/GSA_DOCUMENT/Modern_R2-v01-t_0Z5RDZ-i34K-pR.pdf#search=%22Growth%2C%20Efficen
cy%20and%20Modernism%3A%20GSA%20Buildings%20of%20the%201950s%2C%2060s%20and%2070s%22
• Database of the Denver Area Annual Parade of Homes, http://www.coloradohistory-oahp.org/programareas/infoman/pwwII/DBParadeofHomes.pdf. This database is intended to assist those seeking to gain a better understanding
of Post-WWII residential architectural styles and types. The eleven-year span of the database provides an opportunity to observe changes over time.
EVALUATION
• From Taste to Judgment, Multiple Criteria in the Evaluation of Architecture. William Saunders, Harvard Design
Magazine, Winter/Spring 1999, No. 7. Available for download at: http://www.gsd.harvard.edu/research/publications/
hdm/back/7saunders.pdf
• Evaluating Cultural Resources: Challenging Issues for the 21st Century. Carol D. Schull. CRM 7, 2001. Available for download at: http://crm.cr.nps.gov/archive/24-07/24-07-13.pdf
• Architecture of the Great Society, Assessing the GSA Portfolio of Buildings Constructed During the 1960s
and 1970s. Summary of comments from a meeting convened at Yale University’s Center for British Art, December 5,
2000. http://www.gsa.gov/gsa/cm_attachments/GSA_DOCUMENT/great_society_R2-v02E_0Z5RDZ-i34K-pR.pdf
•
DoCoMoMo_US. How to Evaluate Modern Buildings. http://www.docomomo-s.org/buildings_how_to_evaluate.
shtml
LOCAL DESIGNATION FORMS AND STATEMENTS OF SIGNIFICANCE/ NATIONAL REGISTER NOMINATION
FORMS/NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK NOMINATION FORMS
• The Recent Past Preservation Network has an excellent assortment of National Register forms available on their
website including: the Friendship Shopping Center, the Gettysburg Cyclorama, and the Guthrie Theater. The
site also includes a list of the 2,000+ properties listed according to Criteria Consideration G. http://www.recentpast.
org/research/natreg/index.html
DESIGN GUIDELINES
• Most of the design guidelines listed are not solely for mid-century styles, rather they are included in the inventory of
styles for a particular district. http://www.mydelraybeach.com/NR/rdonlyres/eydwhwvcko23ufm2ebn2p62lxjbknx3cnbcdlsktzajlwqn2347dour7rrmqgo6tjguqnxpytagytthk2wvk73yf6zh/historic_guidelines_section_4.pdf
INTERNATIONAL
• THE MEDAN PROJECT, “Setting a frame work for understanding Modern Heritage in Asia.” Fascintantin project,
covering numerous contries and a range of definitions of modern heritage. Interesting section on Criteria. About the
project: http://medan.m-heritage.org/about_project/index.html
• ICOMOS, Twentieth Century Heritage Conservation Montreal Action Plan. http://www.international.icomos.org/20th_
heritage/montreal_plan.htm
• UNESCO, van Oers, R., and Haraguchi, S., eds., Identification and Documentation of Modern Heritage, World Heritage Papers 5, Paris: World Heritage Centre, UNECSO, 2003. A fascinating look at international preservation. Available for download at: http://whc.unesco.org/en/series/5/
• COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS, At the start of 2001 the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, ICOMOS (International
Council on Monuments and Sites) and DOCOMOMO (Working Party for the Documentation and Conservation of
buildings, sites and neighbourhoods of the Modern Movement) launched a joint programme for the identification,
documentation and promotion of the built heritage of the 19th and 20th centuries - the Programme on Modern HeriJul-Aug 2008
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Recent Past Recon
tage. With financial support from the government of the Netherlands, this programme focuses on raising awareness
concerning the heritage of architecture, town planning and landscape design of the modern era, which is considered
to be particularly vulnerable because of weak legal protection and low appreciation among the general public. The
Programme on Modern Heritage aims to establish a framework of conceptual thinking on the significance of this
heritage, its preservation and some of the pivotal issues concerning identification and valorisation. This framework is
being developed through the various Regional Meetings on Modern Heritage, which have been implemented by the
World Heritage Centre, and should facilitate further, more concrete studies and exercises undertaken by the States
Parties concerned. http://worldheritage-forum.net/en/2006/03/modern_heritage_programme
EDUCATION AND OUTREACH
• Preserving Modern Residences, Great one-page guide from the LA Conservancy. http://www.laconservancy.org/
preservation/YourModernHome.html
• Profiting From Preservation of Modern Structures. Brief one-pager from LA Conservancy. http://www.modcom.
org/profit.shtml
• Responsibilities of Owners of, and Those Who Care About, Historic Architecture from the Palm Springs Modern
Committee. http://www.psmodcom.com/Responsibilities.html
TOURS
• Nifty from the Last Fifty. http://www.historicseattle.org/preservationseattle/publicpolicy/defaultaugust2.htm
20th CENTURY HOUSE MUSEUMS, SITES and NOTEABLE BUILDINGS
• Recent Past Preservation Network, Maintains a list of homes, sites and buildings open to the public.
• Wilson Art House, Temple Texas, Designed for Ralph Wilson Sr., founder of Wilson Art International to showcase the
laminates manufactured by his company. The house, completed in 1959, the house is an example of both modern
and ranch style building. The house was purchased by Wilsonart International from Ralph Wilson’s widow in 1997,
and has been restored to its essential appearance in 1959. It is a striking commentary on the durability of laminate,
nearly all of the original laminate remains in excellent condition, preserving this moment in interior design history It
was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998 and received the 1999 Preservation Award from the
National Trust for Historic Preservation. Open only by appointment. http://www.wilsonart.com/corporate/history/wilson_house/wilsonhouse_history.asp
• Rolling Meadows Historical Museum, Rolling Meadows, Illinois, The newly built Historical Museum was designed
as a replica of the first ranch-style homes constructed in the community by Rolling Meadows founder, Kimball Hill
in 1953. Displays of donated historical documents, photos and furnishings of the ‘50’s era are combined to create
authentic interior spaces within the home. The objective was to create a museum that did not feel like a museum.
Visitors who enter the house will feel they have been transported through time to the actual home of a 1950’s Rolling
Meadows homemaker. The exhibit in the Kimball Hill Family Educational Center contains information on Kimball Hill,
early days in the development of the City of Rolling Meadows, and displays of ‘50’s memorabilia. (Handicapped Accessible). http://www.ci.rolling-meadows.il.us/historical_museum.htm
• 1950s All Electric House, Shawnee, Kansas, Built by the General Electric Company in 1953, the “All Electric House”
was the dream home of the future, full of electrical innovations meant to make life easier for a suburban family. It
was a model home featuring everything from an electrical washer and dryer to a remote control to open and close
the blinds. It was also built for the purpose of deciding if electrical appliances would work better than gas ones. The
Emery Bird Thayer (EBT) department store was responsible for decorating and furnishing the house for the period
when it was open for exhibition. People came from all over the area to come and gawk at this new revolutionary
house. It was moved to the Johnson County Historical Museum to save it from demolition. http://www.jocomuseum.
org/electrichouse.htm
IMAGES
• Arcaid Picture Library, Classic Homes of the 20th Century. Beautiful images of high-style homes with international
focus.
http://www.arcaid.captureweb.co.uk/classified/pages/Classic-Homes.htm?SearchParam=housing
FOR FUN
• Eurobad Welcome to EUROBAD ‘74, an exhibition of Europe’s worst interiors of 1974 (actually a lot of them are pretty
cool). http://www.omodern.com/Eurobad/euro.html
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!
P
U
S
HEAD
PRESERVE AMERICA AND SAVE AMERICA’S
TREASURES AUTHORIZATION BILL APPROVED BY
HOUSE NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE
Information courtesy of the National Trust for Historic Preservation Department of Public Policy
The House Natural Resources Committee marked up and approved with amendments a bill
(H.R. 3981) authorizing the Preserve America (PA) and Save America’s Treasures (SAT) programs on June 11th. The three amendments, approved by voice vote, included:
• A substitute amendment from Natural Resources National Parks, Forests and Public Lands
Subcommittee Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), which made technical changes and brought
the bill in line with language approved by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in the Senate companion bill (S. 2262), capping the authorization for PA at $25 million and SAT at $50 million annually.
• An amendment from Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT) which set the authorizations from FY09FY13. Bishop said allowing the authorizations to expire would help Congress maintain
proper oversight.
• A second amendment from Rep. Bishop prohibited any funds in the bill from being used
to create a or study a National Heritage Area, the multi-state areas of conservation and
historic preservation that many Republicans from western states have derided as improper
land grabs by the federal government.
In previous testimony before Congress the National Trust for Historic Preservation has emphasized and highlighted the synergy between the PA and SAT programs in saving historic and
cultural resources, but also noted that even with all of the tremendous success and support for
these programs they remain unauthorized and are tenuously funded from year-to-year though
the annual appropriations process.
AMTRAK REAUTHORIZATION BILL INCLUDES STUDY OF
RAIL EXEMPTIONS FROM FEDERAL PRESERVATION LAWS
On June 11, the House passed the Amtrak reauthorization bill (H.R. 6003) with an amendment
directing a study to streamline federal historic preservation processes for federally-funded railroad projects. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chairman James Oberstar
(DMN), who opposes any exemption from historic preservation reviews, proposed the study
after Rep. Bill Schuster (R-PA) tried unsuccessfully to amend the bill with an exemption from
Section 4(f) for railway facilities nationwide. The Railroads Subcommittee directed preservationists and the rail industry to seek compromise, if possible, on language that would deal with
perceived problems with rail corridors in Alaska and North Carolina; however, neither side
could agree on a proposal. The National Trust, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation
(ACHP), the National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers (NCSHPO), the Department of Interior, and rail industry representatives will collaborate on the study.
This is a victory for preservationists, but the issue is expected to arise again with the advent of
a new surface transportation reauthorization bill next year.
Jul-Aug 2008
29
State News
State News
FUTURE IS PROMISING FOR
WASHINGTON D.C.’S WAFFLE SHOP
The Waffle Shop, the classic 1950s breakfast spot in
Washington, D.C. across from Ford’s Theater, served
its last waffles (and its last Chinese lunches) last September, but in the battle over just how historic the eatery
really is, the District’s historic preservation board has
now concluded that both the exterior and interior of the
place must be spared from demolition.
D.C. developer Doug Jemal, who owns a hefty chunk
of the block where the Waffle Shop is located, plans a
big office complex there and had originally proposed to
raze the much-loved eatery. After considerable howling
on the part of customers, staff and preservationists, Jemal cut a deal with preservation activists under which
he would pay to dismantle the shop and rebuild it as
part of a project he is planning for his property near the
District’s convention center, at which point it would become, in Jemal’s immortal words, “a waffle shop.”
Ever since, preservationists have fought to have the
city puts its stamp of landmark status on the building as
a way to ensure that the developer sticks to his word.
The preservationists split over Jemal’s plan to move
the Waffle Shop to another location, with most of the
groups grudgingly going along, while the Recent Past
Preservation Network declined to embrace that idea.
“While the other organizations agree that this is not the
preferred solution—saving a building in situ is always
preferable—they believe that the agreement is the best
available option to preserve the shop’s interior and exterior,” wrote preservationist Sally Berk.
The D.C. preservation office concluded that the Waffle
House is worthy of landmarking. Citing the serpentine
counters and terrazzo floor as distinctive elements, city
preservation officer Tim Dennee wrote that the diner “is
significant as an extant, early example of a chain restaurant designed in a distinctive Moderne mode characteristic of diners of the era and particularly of the restaurant’s fellow Blue Bell chain locations in this area.”
The city’s decision doesn’t do anything to help bring the
Waffle Shop back into existence as a place where you
could actually eat a waffle. But the deal between the
developer and the preservationists does commit Jemal
to “operate the shop as a restaurant even if it should
require the developer to subsidize the operation; or, if a
restaurant proves infeasible, to lease to a retail establishment in order to insure public access.”
30
GETTYSBURG’S SPANGLER FARM TO
UNDERGO EXTENSIVE REHAB
The Gettysburg Foundation has purchased the George
Spangler Farm, within Pennsylvania’s Gettysburg National Military Park, protecting the historically significant
site from private development.
The 80-acre farm is located at what was the logistical
center of the Union battle line during the three-day Battle
of Gettysburg in July 1863. During and after the battle,
the site also served as a field hospital, treating Union and
Confederate wounded alike and providing the grounds
for temporary interment of deceased soldiers. It was at
the George Spangler Farm that Confederate General
Lewis Armistead died of the wounds he suffered at the
High Water Mark on July 3. He also was buried there.
Foundation President Robert C. Wilburn says the nonprofit partner of the National Park Service at Gettysburg
plans to rehabilitate the historic property, including its
farm buildings, for use in connection with educational
programming and outreach activities of the two organizations.
“Many of the fields, buildings and boundary lines associated with the Civil War-era George Spangler farm are still
intact,” Wilburn noted. “Purchase of this historic site is in
keeping with our ongoing mission to enhance the preservation and understanding of the heritage and lasting
significance of Gettysburg.”
In addition to providing a venue for programming and
outreach, Wilburn noted that the Foundation’s purchase
of the property also will ensure preservation of historic woodlands and field patterns, as well as the historic
buildings on the site.
A significant amount of rehabilitation will be needed before the site is able to support programming, Wilburn
noted. To assist with these rehabilitation efforts, he announced that Tourism Cares, a nonprofit organization
that supports volunteer efforts to clean up and restore
tourism-related sites, has selected the George Spangler
Farm site as the location of its 2009 Tourism Cares for
America volunteer effort.
For the 2008 Tourism Cares for America event, nearly
350 tourism industry volunteers gathered in New Orleans
in mid-April to help revitalize scenic and historic Louis
Armstrong Park. Approximately the same number will be
traveling to Gettysburg in mid-April 2009 for the project.
& Notes
WE ARE PLEASED TO WELCOME OUR NEW
MEMBERS TO THE NAPC FAMILY
Cherise Bell, New Baunfels, Texas
Devereaux Bemis, Mobile Historic Dvelopment, Mobile,
Alabama
Tersh Boasberg, District of Columbia HPRB, Washington, DC
Eileen Booth, Historic Preservation, Lafayette, Indiana
Anetta Butler, Bremerton, Washington
Roger Denton, Leavenworth Preservation Commission,
Leavenworth, Kansas
Glinda Felty, Waxahachie, Texas
Mattia Flabiano III, Page Southerland Page, Dallas, Texas
Emelie Frazer, Town of Mamou, Mamou, Louisiana
Kathy George, Dayton, Washington
Susan Hall, Longmeadow Historical, Longmeadow,
Massachusetts
Winslow Hastie, Historic Charleston Foundation,
Charleston, South Carolina
Carolyne Hollis, City of Foley Historical Commission,
Foley, Alabama
Betsy McGuire, Russellville Historic District
Commission, Russellville, Arkansas
Cris Meadows, City of Hinton, Hinton, West Virginia
Kerry Miller, Alton, Illinois
Chris Murata, Denver, Colorado
Christine Nelson, Town Planner, Old Saybrook, Connecticut
Carol Olson, Lewisburg Historic Landmarks, Lewisburg,
West Virginia
Katie Pace, Crawfordsville Historic Preservation Commission,
Crawfordsville, Indiana
Anita Parrett, Blytheville Historic District, Blytheville, Arkansas
Bryan Patrick, Asa P. Robinson Historic District Commission,
Conway, Arkansas
Christine Quinn, New Castle County, New Castle, Delaware
Debbie Raber, Hillsboro Historic Landmarks Advisory
Committee, Hillsboro, Oregon
David Rasch, Santa Fe, New Mexico Historic Preservation
Division, Santa Fe, New Mexico
Teresa A. Swan, Pine Island, Minnesota
Gilbert Ulgin, Town of Florence, Florence, Arizona
Terie Velardi, Bay St Louis Historic Preservation Commission,
Bay St Louis, Mississippi
Andrea Young, Hingham Historical Commission, Higham,
Massachusetts
State News & Notes is gathered from preservation publications
across the country. Many thanks to all contributors and organizations that produced the original pieces: by Marc Fisher, washingtonpost.com, April 4, 2008; Gettysburg Foundation Press Release,
May 7, 2008; Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, Connecticut Preservation News, Volume XXXL, no. 2
State News
CONNECTICUT PRESERVATIONISTS
PUSH TO SAVE MODERN DESIGN
Designed in 1972 by Connecticut architect Warren Platner, Suffield’s Kent Memorial Library is at the center of
a preservation dispute. A town building committee has
recommended that the building be demolished to make
way for a new library that would be larger and fully accessible. An additional factor is lingering resentment
over the construction of a Modernist building in Suffield’s center, which is both a National Register district
and a local historic district.
Built around a central courtyard, the library is a formal,
symmetrical design intended to complement the Colonial and Federal-era buildings of Suffield’s main street.
Inside, there are elegant finishes and small nooks to
provide private spaces for reading and study. Large
windows provide plenty of light.
Connecticut Circuit Rider Bard Schide met with the historic district commission, who initially were disposed to
approve demolition. However, as a result of the meeting, the commissioners came to understand the significance of the structure. They wanted to know if there
were alternatives that would allow the building to be
preserved. William Crosskey, an architect and member of the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation’s
Board of Trustees, agreed to provide information on
possibilities for rehabilitation.
Crosskey presented schematic drawings to the commission and the building committee at separate meetings, showing how the needs for accessibility and additional space could be met while preserving Platner’s
vision—and less expensively than a new building. This
alternative set off a round of strongly-worded arguments
in the media and around town.
If the building committee goes forward with its plans, the
historic district commission will have to approve demolition of the existing library. Unfortunately, proponents
of a new building are accusing the commission of obstructionism, even though no application has yet been
made. The Trust held one of its regular workshops for
historic district commissioners in Suffield in March. It is
hoped that the event will help commissioners make a
thoughtful and informed decision when they are called
to do so.
Jul-Aug 2008
31
Join the
National Alliance of Preservation Commissions...TODAY!
Who We Are
Become part of the national network of local preservation,
historic district, and landmark commissions and boards
of architectural review. Organized in 1983 to help local
preservation programs succeed through education, advocacy, and training, The National Alliance of Preservation
Commissions is the only national non-profit organization
dedicated to local preservation commissions and their issues. NAPC is a source of information and support for
local commissions and serves as a unifying body giving
them a national voice. As a member of NAPC, you will
benefit from the experience and ideas of communities
throughout the United States working to protect historic
districts and landmarks through local legislation, education, and advocacy.
Membership Benefits
The Alliance Review, a newsletter filled with practical
information for staff and members of preservation commissions.
NAPC-L, NAPC’s listserv gives you access to local
commission members, staff, and others across the United
States.
A resource center of information, including educational materials, forms, guidelines and ordinances developed and used by commissions across the country.
Technical seminars and conferences, special regional
events, and an annual meeting and workshops for commissions held in conjunction with the National Trust’s Annual Conference.
A voice for your commission in Washington with the
National Park Service, the National Trust, the Advisory
Council, Preservation Action, and the National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers.
Membership Categories
$35 Individuals/ Commissions with a budget under $500
Communities with a population under 5,000 or local
non-profit organizations
$80 Commissions with a budget of $500 - $5,000
Communities with a population of 5,000-50,000 or
regional or statewide nonprofit organizations
$130 Commissions with a budget over $5,000
Communities with a population over 50,000, national non-profit organizations, businesses, state governments, or sponsoring associates
$250 Chair’s Circle - Honoring past Chairs of the NAPC
Board of Directors,
$500 Founder’s Circle - Honoring NAPC’s Founders
Name of Organization
Contact Person
Address
City
Phone
State
Zip Code
Fax
Email/Website
The ALLIANCE REVIEW
University of Georgia
Center for Community Design and Preservation
College of Environment and Design
Founder’s Garden House
325 South Lumpkin Street
Athens, Georgia 30602-1861
NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
PERMIT NO. 165
ATHENS, GEORGIA

recent past recon - Preservation Idaho

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