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Worth Saving
The Newsletter of the North Carolina Historic Preservation Office
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Events and Awards
For statewide event lists, visit the HPO Facebook event list, Preservation North Carolina events list, or a March - May 2013 calendar courtesy of the Federation of N.C. Historical Societies.
March 5 HPO staff will lead a tax credit workshop in Durham, to be held at the Measurement Incorporated headquarters, located at 423 Morris Street, at 7 PM. This workshop is free and open to the public. Contact Preservation Durham for more information at [email protected] or by phone at (919) 682-3036.
March 6 Mayberry Modernism lecture. Room 207 in the Elon Law School Building, 201 N. Greene St., Greensboro. This is a free event. Learn more about the Modernism event here. RSVP to Judi Kastner or call (336) 272-5003.
March 7 HPO staff will present Maintaining Older Buildings, Improving Energy Efficiency and Historic Preservation Tax Credits to be held at the Lloyd Andrews City Meeting Hall, located at 700 Jackson Street, Roanoke Rapids, at 6 PM. The presentation will focus on practical maintenance and repair tips for owners of older and historic properties, will offer an introduction to improving energy efficiency, and will provide information about state and federal historic rehabilitation tax credits. This program is sponsored by the City of Roanoke Rapids in partnership with the Downtown Business Alliance.
March 4-8 Log Cabin Repair and Restoration, Joe Gallagher instructing, offered by the Campbell Center for Historic Preservation Studies at the Historic Arkansas Museum, 200 E. Third St., Little Rock, Arkansas. The cost is $550. Click here to register.
March 12 Planning and Environmental Linkages for Historic Preservation Webinar, 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM The Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Office of Project Development and Environmental Review will host this webinar to present results of a recent nationwide study to identify best practices for integrating planning and environmental review for projects affecting historic resources. These best practices include programmatic agreements, historic property databases, statewide management plans for historic bridges, and staff liaison programs with State Historic Preservation Offices. During this webinar, we will highlight selected case studies and the benefits, challenges, and critical factors for success associated with these case studies. We will also take questions from webinar participants.
The webinar is designed for FHWA, State DOTs, and local transportation, engineering, planning, environmental, and historic preservation staffs; State and Tribal Historic Preservation Offices; private sector transportation, environmental, and historic preservation firms; and state and local historic preservation organizations that partner with transportation agencies. Webinar presenters will include the SRI Foundation authors of the "Planning and Environmental Linkages for Historic Preservation" study and State DOT and local transportation agency staff who created and implemented the highlighted case studies.
Click here to register. You may also download copies of the presentations or view/listen to a recording from an earlier webinar session here. You should enter as a "guest" to access the conference space.
March 15 North Carolina Historical Commission meeting, 10 AM, third-floor conference room, Archives and History/State Library Building, 109 E. Jones St., Raleigh.
March 17-23 Masters of the Building Arts Festival, Charleston, SC. The main event is on Saturday, March 23, from 10 AM - 5 PM, and is free and open to the public. Click here for more information.
March 22-23 African Americans and Education: Williston and the Rosenwald School Legacy Conference at UNCW. The conference will begin in Wilmington at the Watson School of Education building, UNCW, with speakers on Friday and continue on Saturday with a tour of Pender County Rosenwald schools and a reception at Canetuck School. Click here for more information.
March 22-24 Adventure Learning Weekend: Behind the Scenes at Old Salem Museums & Gardens. Join Our State magazine on its first-ever Adventure Learning Weekend, a behind-the-scenes look at Old Salem Museums & Gardens. During the weekend, participants will have unprecedented access to the heirloom gardens, historic buildings, and unparalleled collection of southern decorative arts. Total price: $675 per couple, all-inclusive. To reserve your space call Old Salem at (800) 441-5305. Click here for more information.
March 28 State Construction Conference. The conference will be held at the McKrimmon Center, NC State University, from 8 AM to 5 PM. This conference is a good opportunity for architects, landscape architects, and construction companies to learn about state government construction projects and how they work. Pre-registration is required. Pre-registration cut-off is March 20. After March 20, registrations will be accepted on a space available basis. You must have received a confirmation letter to attend the conference. Click here for more information.
April 2 The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation will present The Advanced Section 106 Seminar in Charlotte at the Dunhill Hotel. This is a one-day course designed for advanced Section 106 practitioners, including federal agency representatives, project sponsors, and other Section 106 stakeholders. Contact Cindy Bienvenue, Meeting and Event Manager, at (202) 606-8521 or [email protected] for more information and click here to read the seminar schedule.
April 13-14 Historic Wilmington Foundation House Tour. There will be ten fabulous historic buildings open for touring on both days and a ribbon cutting ceremony at the Alexander Sprunt House on Saturday, April 13th, with ice cream served. Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 the day of the event. Click here for more information.
April 14-16 Cultural Economy: National Main Street Conference, New Orleans, LA. The 2013 National Main Street Conference is the ideal place to learn new skills, explore new ideas, discover innovative strategies, and share best practices. Find out how other communities have solved common problems on Main Street and get the latest how-to tactics from experts in the field. Click here for more information.
April 17-20 National Council on Public History Conference, Ottawa, Canada. The conference theme is "Knowing your Public(s)-The Significance of Audiences in Public History." Click here for more information and to register.
April 20 The Secrets of College Hill (Greensboro). Free lecture. Learn more about the College Hill event here. RSVP to Judi Kastner or call (336) 272-5003.
May 2-4 16th Annual US/ICOMOS International Symposium, Savannah, GA. The theme is "The Historic Center and the Next City: Envisioning Urban Heritage Evolution." Symposium sessions will provide planners, architects, educators, heritage managers, and preservationists the opportunity to discuss the evolution of our historic urban centers and how they may provide inspiration for the future. For more information, visit US/ICOMOS wesbite or email [email protected].
May 13-17 National Park Service's 2013 Archaeological Prospection Workshop, Ogallala, NE. This is the 22nd year of the workshop dedicated to the use of geophysical, aerial photography, and other remote sensing methods as they apply to the identification, evaluation, conservation, and protection of archaeological resources. Entitled "Current Archaeological Prospection Advances for Non-Destructive Investigations in the 21st Century," it includes lectures on the theory of operation, methodology, processing, and interpretation and on-hands use of the equipment in the field. Application forms are available on the Midwest Archeological Center's website. For more information, contact Steven L. DeVore by email or by phone at (402) 437-5392, ext. 141.
May 18-19 Third Annual Preservation Greensboro Incorporated Tour of Historic Homes and Gardens, featuring the Historic College Hill neighborhood. This year's tour will include ten 19th-century houses, private gardens, and two additional events for Patron Pass holders. For more information, contact Judi Kastner or call (336) 272-5003.
October 2-4 Preservation North Carolina's 2013 Annual Conference will be in Edenton. Save the date!
2013 Best of the South Award The Southeast Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians seeks nominations for the Best of the South: Preserving Southern Architecture Award. This annual award honors a project that preserves or restores a historic building or complex of buildings in an outstanding manner and that demonstrates excellence in research, technique and documentation. Projects in the twelve-state region of SESAH that were completed in 2011 or 2012 are eligible. Nominations should consist of no more than two typed pages of description and be accompanied by hard copy illustrations and any other supporting material. A cover letter should identify the owner of the project, the use of the building(s), and the names of all the major participants in the project. Send three (3) copies to Elizabeth M. Humphreys, 6542 Kobe Court, Montgomery, AL 36117. Deadline: July 1, 2013. For more information about the award and SESAH, visit the organization's website or email Elizabeth Humphreys.
N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association Restaurateur of the Year Award Raleigh developer Greg Hatem has been named as this year's recipient. Hatem is the head of Empire Properties, which owns 40 historic buildings in downtown Raleigh and Durham, many of which have been renovated for restaurant use. His company has been instrumental in the revitalization of downtown Raleigh and in the preservation of its historic building stock.
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Recent National Register Listings
Tryon Country Club (Polk County), prepared by J. Templeton and C. Griffith, listed 2/05/13
Established in 1917, the Tryon Country Club is significant for the role it has played in the recreation and entertainment history of Tryon, Polk County. Accompanied by a 9-hole golf course, the 1922 clubhouse is also locally significant as an excellent example of the Rustic Revival style of architecture.
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Rehabilitation and Tax Credit Projects
The ca. 1877 (enlarged ca. 1910) Sadgwar House in the Wilmington Historic District (New Hanover County) was rehabilitated for professional offices utilizing the federal and state income-producing historic tax credits with a private rehabilitation investment of $100,000.
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The Sadgwar House before and after restoration
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The ca. 1916 Lawrence Dry Cleaners Building in the Downtown Elkin Historic District (Surry County) was rehabilitated as Fiddles Pub utilizing the federal and state income-producing historic tax credits with a private rehabilitation investment of $100,000.
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Lawrence Cleaners, before and during restoration
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North Carolina by the Numbers
Want to know how North Carolina is doing in terms of National Register listings and rehabilitation tax credit investment? Click here to read the National Park Service's summary of these and other statistics.
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Obama Nominates Interior Secretary
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Sally Jewell with President Obama and outgoing Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. Photo courtesy of the White House blog
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President Obama has announced his nomination of Recreation Equipment Inc. (REI) CEO, Sally Jewell, as the next Secretary of Interior. Jewell introduced President Obama when he announced the America's Great Outdoors (AGO) initiative, his signature recreation proposal, at an event on April 16, 2010. Jewell, a major player in the recreation industry, also spent time as a petroleum engineer for Mobil Oil Corporation early in her career. She is currently a vice chair of the National Parks Conservation Association board. Click here to read more.
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Recent Discoveries at the Cupola House
The Edenton Historical Commission has launched a new website containing research articles on southern architecture, furniture, and hist ory. HPO Restoration Specialist Reid Thomas has contributed an article about fascinating finds recently revealed at the Cupola House. Click here to read the article.
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The North Carolina National Register Advisory Committee
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(left to right, top row) Deputy SHPO Ramona Bartos, SHPO Kevin Cherry, B. Perry Morrison Jr., David Black, National Register Coordinator Ann Swallow, Survey and National Register Branch Supervisor Claudia Brown, (left to right, middle row) Jerry Cashion, Department of Cultural Resources Secretary Susan Kluttz, Millie Barbee, Jo Ramsay Leimenstoll, Valerie Johnson, (left to right, front row) Director of the Division of Historical Resources David Brook, John Larson, Linda Stine, Barbara Snowden, George Edwards at the February 2013 NRAC meeting. Commissioners Wendy Grady and Edmond Boudreaux III were absent
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The National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, requires that state historic preservation programs have a qualified state historic preservation review board to review nominations to the National Register of Historic Places and that the majority of the board's members be professionals qualified in the disciplines of history, prehistoric and historic archaeology, architectural history, and architecture. In North Carolina, the review board is the North Carolina National Register Advisory Committee, which comprises twelve members appointed by the state historic preservation officer: five are representatives of the North Carolina Historical Commission (NCHC), identified as commission members, and seven are North Carolina citizens who are not NCHC members, identified as citizen members. Members serve staggered two-year terms beginning July 1 and can be re-appointed twice for a maximum of three consecutive terms. The state historic preservation officer acts as the secretary for the committee, which meets in February, June, and October, usually on the second Thursday of the month. NRAC meeting agendas and minutes are posted on the HPO's web site. A list of the current NRAC members follows:
- B. Perry Morrison Jr., commission member
- Millie M. Barbee, commission member
- David R. Black, citizen member qualified in architecture
- Edmond A. Boudreaux III, citizen member qualified in pre-historic archaeology
- Jerry C. Cashion, commission member qualified in history
- George W. Edwards, citizen member
- Wendy Grady, citizen member
- Valerie A. Johnson, commission member qualified in history
- John Larson, citizen member qualified in architectural history
- Jo Ramsay Leimenstoll, citizen member qualified in architecture and architectural history
- Barbara Blythe Snowden, commission member
- Linda F. Stine, citizen member qualified in historic archaeology
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National Register Staff Consultants and HPO Staff Visit Cold War-Era Voice of America Site B
In November 2012, as part of the HPO's National Register Consultant's Workshop, HPO staff and workshop participants were treated to a tour of Voice of America (VOA) Greenville
 | | Voice of America Site B main building |
Transmitting Station (Site B) in southern Pitt County, the East Coast transmitting station for Voice of America also known as the Edward R. Murrow Transmitting Station. Approximately 20 people from the workshop were guided through the Cold War-era facility by veteran employee Macon Moye Dail, who provided a lengthy tour of the site and explained the history of VOA in North Carolina.
The transmitting station provides shortwave broadcasts for U.S. government-funded nonmilitary, international broadcasting. The main target areas for the station's shortwave broadcasts are Latin America, Cuba, the Caribbean, North Africa, and Africa. This rare property type is exceptionally important for its role in Cold War-era international communications and broadcasting.
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Voice of America Site B transmission array
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In the early 1950s, VOA planned for the construction of a high-power shortwave complex on the East Coast of the United States to provide coverage to Europe, Africa, and South America. By 1954, the project was suspended, but the need continued to grow. The transmitters in Wayne, New Jersey, and Brentwood and Schenectady, New York, were becoming less adequate every year, and in 1958 Congress gave approval for a new transmitting station. That same year, site exploration found 38 potential locations. The site had to be south enough to avoid the northern auroral zone, but close enough to Washington D.C. to keep transmitting cost to a minimum. In 1959, the Greenville area was chosen because of its remoteness from other communication services, proximity of large quantities of reliable electric power, type of terrain and suitability for construction, and availability of property which ensured the best electronic propagation conditions.
Because of the number of transmitters needed, it was decided to split the transmitting site into two, site A, in northwestern Beaufort County, and site B, southeast of Greenville. The receiving facilities, program master control, communications center, and station main offices were located at site C, a short distance west of Greenville. Construction began on February 15, 1960, and was completed December 7, 1962, at a cost of approximately $24 million. All three sites were dedicated by President John F. Kennedy and became operational on February 8, 1963. The new facilities doubled the VOA's power and employed 100 people around the clock. The cost was offset by the closure of the transmitters in New Jersey and New York.
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Macon Moye Dail guiding a tour of the facility
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From January 1988 until mid-1997, the station was the network training facility for new Foreign Service Officers, who spent six months in training at the stations prior to being sent overseas. The Greenville facilities became the most powerful international broadcaster in the world, in both physical size and radio frequency energy. Each of the sites housed nine transmitters - three of 500,000 watts, three of 250,000 watts, and three of 50,000 watts.
About ten years ago, Site C was decommissioned and leased to East Carolina University for a variety of programs. In 2010, Site A was closed and "mothballed," to be used as spare parts, when its operations were consolidated at Site B. Today, only Site B remains in use.
Click here to learn more about Voice of America.
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Oberlin Cemetery Becomes a Raleigh Historic Landmark
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Oberlin Cemetery
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Oberlin is one of Raleigh's oldest African American cemeteries, dating to the 1870s. It is also one of the few surviving resources from the historic African American community of Oberlin Village, Wake County's largest settlement of free blacks after the Civil War. Click here and here to learn more.
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Raleigh's Crabtree Jones House to be Moved
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Crabtree Jones House at its original site
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After 200 years perched upon a hill overlooking Raleigh's Six Forks Road, just inside the Beltline, the 1795 Federal-style Crabtree Jones House will soon move to a site nearby to make way for new development. Click here to learn more.
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HPO Represented at Saltwater Connections Winter Assembly and Outer Banks National Scenic Byway Advisory Committee Regional Meetings on Ocracoke Island
John Wood, preservation/restoration specialist in the HPO Eastern Office, attended the Outer Banks National Scenic Byway Advisory Committee Regional Meeting, Outer Banks National Scenic Byway Marketing Workday, and Saltwater Connections Winter Assembly Meetings that were held on January 24-26, 2013 on Ocracoke Island.
Salt Water Connections, a N.C. Rural Economic Development Center-funded initiative, is working on Hatteras Island (Dare County), Ocracoke Island (Hyde County) and Down East (Carteret County) to develop a natural and cultural resource-based economic development program for the twenty-one unincorporated communities along the Outer Banks National Scenic Byway. The meetings related to the promotion, marketing, and benefits of the newly designated Outer Banks National Scenic Byway that runs from Whale Bone Junction in Dare County to the North River in Down East, Carteret County.
 Mr. Wood participated in the meetings as a speaker and panelist in a series of sessions on asset-based economic development, heritage/arts/eco-tourism, and creative economies. Despite freezing rain driven by fifty mile per hour winds and late ferries, fifty-nine participants attended the three-day event. The collaborative meetings also included sessions on regional local foods opportunities; youth entrepreneurship and school partnership opportunities; small business development; and nonprofit and community development, with the primary purpose of the conference being a forum to connect local people, businesses, and organizations with state and federal agency representatives.
In addition to the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, other agencies represented at the meetings included the National Park Service, N.C. Department of Agriculture, N.C. Department of Commerce, N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and the NC Arts Council. Organizations including the N.C. Coastal Federation, N.C. Sea Grant Extension Program, the Conservation Trust for NC, the N.C. State University Center for Environmental Farming Systems, the East Carolina University Center for Sustainable Tourism, the Conservation Fund/Natural Capital Investment Fund were also represented. Beside representatives from local governments and businesses, local organizations in attendance included the Coastal Farmers Co-op, the Down East Council, the Hatteras Village Civic Association, the Hatteras Island Community Task Force, and the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau.
Providing perspective from outside the region, two keynote speakers were featured: Natalie Springuel of the University of Maine's Sea Grant College Program spoke on Maine's Downeast Fisheries Trail, which connects historic and active fisheries sites that illustrate the region's maritime heritage. Peggy Bendel of Bendel Communications International gave a presentation on results-focused marketing solutions for tourist/travel destinations.
On Friday evening, participants enjoyed a community supper of traditional Ocracoke dishes prepared by Ocracoke natives and the Ocracoke Fish House. The delicious fare was followed by a traditional Ocracoke square dance called by local historian Philip Howard with music provided by "Fiddler Dave" Tweedie and friends.
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New N.C. ECHO Site Launched
N.C. ECHO-North Carolina Exploring Cultural Heritage Online -has been updated to expand access to digitized local history collections held by a number of institutions across the state from a single search box. To view an item in its entirety, users are linked to it in the owning institution's digital collections. This is a collaborative project led by the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center, N.C. LIVE, and the State Library of North Carolina.
 A previous program by the same name was managed by the State Library of North Carolina from 1999 to 2012 with the intent to identify and digitize local cultural heritage collections. The newly revived N.C. ECHO program continues with the same spirit to build connections and improve access to these collections of historic materials. Over the coming year, the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center will continue to work with cultural institutions across North Carolina to add new materials to this statewide search.
To use N.C. ECHO, patrons can visit http://ncecho.org and search historical interests, places, or people. All of the collections available through the NC ECHO search are freely available online to all users. N.C. ECHO enables users to search across thousands of digitized and "born-digital" historic materials, including a wide variety of books, photographs, maps, family histories, state documents, newspapers, and other materials from cultural heritage institutions around North Carolina, including the State Library of North Carolina and State Archives of North Carolina. The collections available through N.C. ECHO include a diverse array of materials by and about the people, places and history of North Carolina.
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More on North Carolina's Oldest Dated House
Check out a Public Radio East interview with Steve Lane, owner of 304 E. Queen St. in Edenton, and HPO restoration specialist Reid Thomas.
Also, see the final dendrochronolgy report.
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Nine Good Reasons to Preserve
Why should we preserve buildings, anyway? Here are nine good reasons! You don't have to know anything about Knoxville, TN, to appreciate these apropos arguments in favor of preservation. Couched in everyday language that anybody can relate to, this article will probably make you think of those places in your own community that time has not run out on. For anyone who wonders why some people fret over the future old buildings, this is a great summary!
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Burial Database Project of Enslaved African Americans
The mission of the Burial Database Project of Enslaved African Americans is to identify, document and memorialize burial sites of the enslaved, most of which are abandoned or undocumented. The database is currently seeking submissions regarding the location of slave burial grounds in any state. A submitted slave burial ground is a gravesite that includes one or more burials of persons who died enslaved or were born enslaved and died after emancipation. The projects welcomes any burial submission regardless of its status (marked, unmarked, abandoned), its size, or its type (family cemetery, plantation cemetery, church cemetery, etc.). Each evaluated submission will receive follow-up communication for verification and complete documentation. The Burial Database Project of Enslaved African Americans is currently housed in the Department of African and African American Studies at Fordham University in New York City and is available online here.
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Pew Charitable Trusts Release a School Reuse Study
The Pew Charitable Trusts has released a new study examining the trends and issues associated with finding new uses for closed schools in large cities. The research project was initiated by the Trust's Philadelphia Research Initiative in response to the Philadelphia School District's plan to shutter 37 schools throughout the city. Click here to read the report.
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Streamlining Compliance with Section 106
State departments of transportation and their partner agencies have developed programs to more effectively, quickly, and efficiently deliver projects that could affect historic resources. These programs focus on streamlining compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Section 106) and improving historic resource stewardship early in the planning and project development processes. The Federal Highway Administration's Planning and Environmental Linkages for Historic Preservation report highlights new and innovative strategies for improving stewardship of historic resources. Click here to read the latest Streamline newsletter.
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Ten Strategies for Educating the Next Generation of Historic Preservationists
This piece by Dr. Jeremy C. Wells outlines the ten key take-aways from the first-of-its-kind conference on preservation education, "Preservation Education: Sharing Best Practices and Finding Common Ground," hosted by the School of Architecture, Art and Historic Preservation of Roger Williams University in September 2012 in Providence, R.I. Click here to read the article.
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The Cultural Landscape Foundation Seeks Summer Intern
The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF) in Washington DC seeks to fill the Sally Boasberg Founder's Fellowship position for Summer 2013. The position, which is paid and includes housing, is available for 8-12 weeks between June and September, with a final schedule determined in consultation with the successful candidate. The Boasberg Fellow would participate in TCLF's various programs, including What's Out There, Landslide, and Pioneers of American Landscape Design Oral Histories. Specific tasks include writing and text editing, research, photography and photo editing, Website management, basic graphic design, and event planning. Good writing skills and attention to detail are essential for the job. Click here for more information or to apply.
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