@hhpreserveit / hhpreserveit.tumblr.com
During the federal government shutdown, we will not monitor or update social media. Some National Park Service areas are accessible, however access may change without notice, and there are no NPS-provided services. For more information, visit the park’s website at www.nps.gov
Arranged chronologically, this publication demonstrates how the body of law has changed over the last one hundred years. Beginning in 1906 with the Antiquities Act, highlighted in 1966 with the National Historic Preservation Act, and most recently restructured with the creation of Title 54 of the United States Code in 2014, this book details the gradual evolution of American historic preservation law.
From its creation in 1916, the National Park Service assumed responsibility for the many historical and cultural sites of the National Park System, but the size and scope of preservation law has expanded over the years to include protection and recognition of historic resources across all levels of government and on public and private land alike. The practice of historic preservation extends far beyond the limits of this book as well, including State and Tribal law and local historic designation processes, but this publication focuses exclusively on statues enacted on a Federal level.
This update incorporates amendments and other changes to existing laws as well as several newly enacted programs, but the majority of changes pertain to those laws now contained in Title 54 of the United States Code. Congress enacted Title 54 in 2014 in order to simplify citations and provide room for expansion in the body of law surrounding the National Park Service and the programs that it administers, including historic preservation programs.
To do this, Congress gathered all the relevant laws which were spread throughout the Code (mostly in Title 16), repealed them, and reenacted them in their new Title 54 home. During this process, Congress moved sections together that they thought were related, and occasionally split sections into multiple parts where they did not belong together. Because of this, each law in this book follows the organization and structure of the original Act while using the updated language from Title 54.
Past versions of Federal Historic Preservation Laws have helped everyone from government agencies and lawyers, to university professors and everyday citizens, to reference and understand the Federal framework of historic preservation law. This newest update aims to build on that function by presenting recent changes in the law as an intuitive format so that communities and individuals may continue to draw upon it as a tool to preserve what makes their communities special.
The State, Tribal, Local, Plans & Grants Division is a part of Cultural Resources, Partnerships and Science, within the National Park Service. John Renaud and Jessica Goodman prepared and edited the text. Matthew Payne designed the publication.
The web version of the book is available at go.nps.gov/preservationlaws.
We expect physical copies of the publication to be available through the Government Publishing Office this fall.
On August 8, 2015, the Kawaihae Fire started on the Big Island of Hawaii, burning rapidly through the Puukohola Heiau National Historic Site on the island's northwest coast. Native Hawaiian Organizations maintain strong traditional ties here to the ruins of the last major ancient Hawaiian temple. Just below Puʻukoholā Heiau, on the coconut tree-shaded beach known as Pelekane, is the site of the court of King Kamehameha I. Yet, the fire raged across this “kapu” place, once limited to the royal family, priest, and nobility, forcing traditional ceremonies to be cancelled and exposing archaeological and cultural artifacts to vandalism. Then, a massive flash flood swept through, further impacting the park’s significant cultural resources.
The National Park Service’s Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team moved in to assess the damage and conditions of the precious site. Consisting of Marti Witter, Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, Brian Rasmussen and Joe Svinarich, Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, Jim Roche, Yosemite National Park, Amy Hoke, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Adam Johnson and Elizabeth Gordon,Pu'uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park, and Rick Gmirkin, Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail, the team noted that the low-intensity fire resulted in minor direct damage, but the indirect impacts of erosion, fire-killed hazard trees, and looting were a much bigger concern. Emergency stabilization was urgent with more intense storms looming. They immediately got to work, replacing timbers of a retaining wall, removing hazard trees, and building sand-bag barriers around effected cultural features.
We’d like to say mahalo and #HatsOff2 the BAER team and all the volunteers who helped protect this special piece of our heritage.
NPS Photos.
Paloma Bolasny got her first taste of working for the National Park Service's preservation programs through an internship with the National Council for Preservation Education. Now, she's a wizard at managing youth programs! As coordinator of the National Park Service's Cultural Resources Diversity Internship Program and the Latino Heritage Internship Program, she’s inspiring the next generation of heritage conservationists, so#HatsOff2 Paloma! Her internship training programs get young people involved in hands-on preservation work like archaeology and oral history in parks across the country. She is thrilled to promote youth programs within cultural resources and over the past few years her programs have grown, creating more meaningful opportunities for youth to learn and work with the National Park Service!
Judith Collins fondly recalls the summer trips her family took to national parks across the country: “I think those experiences allowed me to see our environment not just as natural or built, but as evidence of our shared history. I see the effect we have on it during our lifetime and understand the responsibility we have to protect it.” Today, Judith is the historical architect at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, where she oversees the preservation of more than 150 years of architectural history. Across Lake Michigan, on the south side of Chicago, she helps as the Acting Cultural Resources Specialist at the brand new Pullman National Monument. #HatsOff2 Judith!
Sueann Brown is a historical architect with the Pacific West Regional Office. In her own words…
“It is such an honor and a privilege to have a role in the preservation of the amazing cultural resources in our national parks to help “…leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations”. I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to share my knowledge of preservation with park management and maintenance staff to help them care for our historic structures and landscapes. What I love most are the opportunities I have to share my passion for preservation with students and interns. I was a student at a field school the first time I met a NPS historical architect. So, it feels great to be in that position now and possibly have a role in inspiring the next generation of cultural resource professionals.”
Sueann, we take our #HatsOff2 you and the amazing work you do in the Pacific West!
Watch what she gets to be a part of…
This week, we take our #HatsOff2 the DEWA Preservation Team!
Reestablished in 2014, this small group has a large responsibility for the high priority historic structures throughout the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. They perform emergency stabilization, preservation, and rehabilitation work of all kinds. The crew works under the direction of project leader and lead preservation carpenter Mark Segro who came to DEWA from the NPS Historic Preservation Training Center in 2012.
The crew proudly stands in front of the 18th century Van Gordon House, where they recently completed a comprehensive re-roofing and exterior envelope preservation project. Pictured from left to right are Scott Predmore, Kent Cook, Mark Segro, and Cody Sumski.
Thanks for all of your hard work to save these structures for future generations to appreciate and enjoy!
This week, we take our #HatsOff2 Don Wollenhaupt, Chief of Interpretation and Education in the Southeast Region.
“What inspires me is providing support and advice to the park Chiefs of Interpretation and Education as well as those front line interpreters which inform and inspire our visitors day in and day out, whether it is in the park or online. I was a park chief at three parks earlier in my career before coming to the Southeast Region, so I understand both their needs and the desires of the park chiefs to create stellar educational opportunities for the audiences in their parks. I have also been inspired by the interpretive connections I have made in trips overseas for International Affairs with national park rangers in Germany, Guyana and the Ukraine. Throughout these assignments, I have had valuable conversations with historians, interpreters, and park visitors on the historical and cultural stories in our parks. History was my favorite subject in school and it continues to be a favorite subject of mine.”
Alex Hernandez is the Assistant Program Manager for the Japanese American Confinement Sites Program and Regional Coordinator for the Intermountain Region of the Heritage Areas Program. While she may wear these two different hats, figuratively speaking, we’re taking our #HatsOff2 Alex in recognition of her contributions to the preservation of the story of Japanese Americans during World War II.
What does an Assistant Program Manager do? “As a historian with the National Park Service, I assist in managing federal grants that go towards preserving and interpreting U.S. confinement sites where Japanese Americans were forcibly detained during World War II. The grant projects offer opportunities for present and future generations to learn and gain inspiration from these sites.”
How do you feel about your work? “My work is incredibly fulfilling because the National Park Service and our many partners are committed to never forgetting this part of our nation’s history or the experiences of those who were incarcerated during World War II.”
Please join us in thanking Alex for her part in preserving this important American story.
If you would like to learn more about the Japanese American Confinement Sites Grant Program, please visit: www.nps.gov/jacs
This week we dig deeper into the preservation field as we salute #HatsOff2 Mary S. Carroll! Mary is Chief of Park Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (Park NAGPRA).
NAGPRA provides a process for museums and Federal agencies to resolve interests in Native American cultural items -- human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony -- among lineal descendants, Indian tribes, Alaska Native villages, and Native Hawaiian organizations.
Handling these most sacred items reminds us that preservation isn’t just about buildings.
As an archaeologist, Mary became interested early in her career in how information, in the form of digital data, is preserved for use and re-use by others studying the past. Her first job with NPS was at the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training (NCPTT) overseeing information management grants and projects. Then she moved to working with the NAGPRA, where the focus is returning Native American ancestors’ remains and objects to their descendants. I spend a lot of time advising and training NPS staff on how to work through NAGPRA, building positive relationships with Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations in the process.
#HatsOff2 James Bird!
As Chief of the Tribal Preservation Program, James has grown and strengthened our partnerships with the Tribal Historic Preservation Offices (THPOs). James understands the struggles faced by many trying to protect important culture with very limited resources based on his first-hand experience developing the Eastern Cherokee THPO program. This insight that has served him well in his tenure with the National Park Service.
James' reflections on successes of the program:
Helping new tribes succeed even if it takes years of negotiation and training. Bringing in new tribes to the THPO program even though it is tempered by depreciating funding.
Site visits such to projects like the Lac du Flambeau Boys School project are a rare but important opportunity to see first-hand the attitude of the people involved. The school was preserved so it can serve as an interpretive tool, remembering painful past can be controversial but it is important to have the structure remain as a learning tool.
#Hatsoff2 Alesha Cerny!
Alesha is the National Historic Landmarks (NHL) Coordinator for Illinois and Minnesota. Together with her colleagues, Alesha works to preserve sites that embody our nation’s diverse and vibrant heritage. This includes the tomb of President Lincoln in Springfield, Illinois, and the home of aviator Charles Lindbergh in Little Falls, Minnesota.
What’s the best part of her job? “Making site visits to potential and existing [landmarks],” Alesha says. “Site visits really open the lines of communication with NHL stewards.”
Thank you for all of your work, Alesha!
What's a Material Conservator you ask? Jason Church, Materials Conservator with the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training (NCPTT) shares about his work in his own words as we salute him with #hatsoff2 Jason!
"Historic Preservation is one of the most diverse fields that I know of. You can focus on planning, law and economics, material culture, landscapes, the built environment, or the people who created it all. I choose a career in historic preservation because I have always loved history and working with my hands. I do not know of another field where you can truly touch history and take pride in knowing that you have preserved it for future generations. In my job with NCPTT I get to travel around our great country to work in cemeteries and help locals learn to care for them. I see graveyards as sacred outdoor sculpture gardens and as a conservator I want to do the best and least invasive treatments possible."
In order to accomplish that, the program Jason works with at NCPTT undertakes studies to understand how historic materials decay, develops and evaluates new treatments to preserve them, and disseminates scientific results of the studies and techniques for utilizing various technologies in the field of preservation. Of particular interest to this crew is the study of outdoor air pollution effects on cultural materials.
Katie Orr, helps teachers across the nation bring the power of place to our future preservationists as a historian and the Education Coordinator in the Cultural Resources Office of Interpretation & Education. Her work includes developing the Teaching with Historic Places lesson plans and Youth Summits. More than 160 classroom-ready lesson plans cover major social studies themes and topics in American history, including civil rights, immigrant experiences, women's history, military conflicts, and government, just to name a few.
#HatsOff2 Katie as she works diligently to bring the lessons learned best by standing in the place of our predecessors. What keeps her going?
“Place has power! I use the historic sites on the National Register of Historic Places to help educators teach and help young people engage with their communities. My work on Teaching with Historic Places, Youth Summits, and other education projects at NPS is all about the power of place, and most of my time is spent editing lesson plans and developing web resources for the public at NPS.gov. I come into the office every day thinking about ways NPS Programs can serve Americans -- ALL Americans -- through heritage education, whether they're exploring a Park, sitting in a classroom, or walking their dog down mainstreet.”
Where have I been on previous NHPA anniversaries?
1976 – First job with NPS – at the National Register Publications Branch. We celebrated the 10th anniversary of National Historic Preservation Act!
20th - 1986 – team leader for tax credit reviews in Mid-Atlantic Regional Office, NPS
30th and 40th - 1996, 2006 – Ohio Historic Preservation Office, Department Head for Technical Preservation Services (Tax Credit reviews and building preservation technical assistance)
50th anniversary! 2016 – National Coordinator for Heritage Areas National Heritage Areas are the NHPA “come to life” – local areas utilizing National Historic Preservation Act programs and more – preserving, conserving, promoting knowledge of and access to historic, cultural and natural resources, leveraging federal assistance with other funds and local in-kind support. #50for50
Our NPS NHA team and the NHA Directors, staff and partners provide great inspiration to me. Their dedicated and creative work benefits historic, cultural and natural resources across the country.
During my career, I have tried to remember the following: “I will listen to others, Be patient, Keep open lines of communication, And forget my ego.”
#HatsOff2 Martha Raymond National Coordinator for Heritage Areas National Heritage Areas (NHAs) are designated by Congress as places where natural, cultural, and historic resources combine to form a cohesive, nationally important landscape. NHAs are lived-in landscapes. Consequently, NHA entities collaborate with communities to determine how to make heritage relevant to local interests and needs.
This week, we take our #HatsOff2 Dr. Turkiya Lowe!
After spending some time in the Washington, DC, office with the National Historic Landmarks program, Turkiya returned to her southern roots as Chief Historian in the Southeast Regional Office of the National Park Service.
“History is more than a bunch of boring names and dates! History is our present story told about our past ancestors through the places where they were born, lived, and died. Prayerfully, we will preserve these places so that our future stories will be rooted in tangible experience.”
Dr. Lowe, we thank you for your service and hope you will continue to shine the light on interesting stories and places for many years to come!
Anne Grimmer, Technical Preservation Services
Chances are, if you’re active in preservation then you have consulted at least one of the publications written, revised, or developed by Anne Grimmer. Please join us in taking our #HatsOff2 Anne!
In asking Anne about her nearly 40-year tenure with the National Park Service, she says, “I have been fortunate to have had the opportunity to ‘learn on the job.’”
Her first focus was on the preservation of historic masonry, a topic on which she published two independent pieces in addition to co-authoring Preservation Brief 1 about cleaning historic masonry buildings. There are eight other Preservation Briefs that she either authored, co-authored, revised, or coordinated their development. Anne also co-authored the Treatment Guidelines that accompany the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards, the Guidelines on Sustainability for Rehabilitating Historic Buildings, and she is currently updating the Treatment Guidelines to be issued during the NPS Centennial Year.
In addition to her work as author and researcher, she has also been a reviewer for the Federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentives program since 1995.
Her colleagues in Technical Preservation Services rely on her for a broad range of expertise and would be lost without her sharp editing skills. We’re thankful for Anne’s dedicated service and are proud to honor her as part of our #50for50 celebration of the National Historic Preservation Act.
