| Oregon Heritage News |
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| May is Preservation Month |
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04-30 Preservation Month Highlights Diverse Resources
May is National Historic Preservation Month and for Oregonians it's a time to explore the state’s significant places and historical treasures. These historic places, artifacts, photographs and documents not only help tell the stories of our past, they also stimulate heritage tourism, a demonstrated force in economic development in communities throughout the state.
Oregon Heritage, a division of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, has an online calendar of historic preservation events taking place during May.
Examples of the events include a window repair workshop in Portland; a heritage preservation fair in Salem; an Oregon Encyclopedia workshop in Bend; a preservation fair and roundtable in Astoria; historic home tours in Lake Oswego, Jacksonville and Pendleton; and an 1812 war veteran’s ceremony in Amity.
“Preservation is an important part of the infrastructure of many communities,” says Roger Roper, deputy state historic preservation officer and assistant director of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. “May is a great time to explore the diversity of our heritage and to learn preservation skills.”
Oregon has more than 200 museums, dozens of archives and 300 public libraries, many of which have historic collections. For example, among the collections of the Oregon Historical Society, are more than 2.5 million photographic images.
In addition there are nearly 2,000 individual properties on the National Register of Historic Places, at least one in every county. There are nearly 800 designated historic cemeteries. It’s also been estimated that 75 percent of U.S. leisure travelers participate in cultural and/or heritage activities during travel.
In 2010, nearly $10 million in private re-investment was stimulated by seven Oregon Main Street communities which are using historic business areas.
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| Cottage Grove Armory |
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03-27 Cottage Grove Armory Added to National Register of Historic Places
The Cottage Grove National Guard Armory located in Cottage Grove is Oregon’s latest entry in the National Register of Historic Places.
The Cottage Grove Armory, located in the downtown historic district of Cottage Grove, Oregon, is significant for its use as a military armory and as a community center and civic heart of Cottage Grove. Constructed in 1931 using funds from state, county, and city bonds, it was the first armory built in Cottage Grove and one of the ten original armories in Oregon.
During its use, the Cottage Grove Armory was home to two batteries and an infantry unit of the Oregon National Guard, as well as a community center hosting activities such as the County Fair, high school dances, roller-skating, Grange meetings, and the Boy Scouts. Designed by the Eugene architecture firm of Hunzicker, Smith, and Phillips at the start of the Great Depression, the Cottage Grove Armory was the first National Guard armory built in the Art Deco style in Oregon and one of only four examples of the style in the city.
Oregon’s State Advisory Committee on Historic Preservation recommended the building’s nomination in October 2011. The National Register is maintained by the National Park Service under the authority of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966.
More information about the National Register listings in Oregon is available here.
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| Talbot Family Honored |
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03-14 Certificate Awarded to John and Diana Van Driesche
A Talbot couple has been recognized with an Oregon Heritage Stewardship Certificate for their efforts to preserve an important archaeological site.
In 2009, the Oregon State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) received a phone call from private property owners Diana and John Van Driesche of Talbot. While constructing an emergency entrance into the basement of their home, the couple had found Native American artifacts and a burned feature beneath the surface.
The Van Driesches promptly halted construction and contacted the State Archaeologist at the SHPO. Later, volunteers from the Oregon Archaeological Society; students from Oregon State University, the University of Oregon, and various community colleges; and professional archaeologists from the Association of Oregon Archaeologists, private archaeological firms, federal agencies, state agencies, and Tribes, conducted archaeological testing.
The investigations found basalt, obsidian and chert tools and debitage, and remnants of a hearth. (Debitage is waste material leftover from making tools.) Recent radiocarbon dates indicate the site was occupied 5,500 to 9,100 years ago.
"Thanks to Diana and John’s watchful eye and thoughtful decision to contact the State Historic Preservation Office an important Native American site was preserved for future generations," says Nancy Nelson, a Heritage Programs archaeologist with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. "We thank them for their contribution to protecting Oregon’s cultural heritage."
The Heritage Stewardship Recognition program was initiated by Heritage Programs of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department to raise the profile of Oregonians who go the extra mile in protecting the state’s heritage.
Heritage Programs of Oregon Parks and Recreation Department includes the Oregon Commission on Historic Cemeteries, the Oregon Heritage Commission, the Oregon Historic Trails Advisory Council and the State Historic Preservation Office. For more information, contact Kyle Jansson at heritage.info@state.or.us or 503-986-0673.
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| Historic Sites Database |
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01-10 New Oregon Historic Sites Database Features Released
The State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) has released several new features for the Oregon Historic Sites Database that will aid government agencies, heritage organizations, and anyone interested in learning more about Oregon’s over 56,000 recorded historic places.
New features available in the database include the ability to download nomination forms for properties listed in the National Register and all inventory forms for surveyed properties. A statewide map is also available that graphically displays all properties in the database with links to individual property records.
“The Oregon Historic Sites Database is a critical tool for managing information about Oregon’s historic places,” said Roger Roper, Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer. “These new features will provide users with greater on-demand access to data collected by the SHPO over the last 45 years.”
A link to the Oregon Historic Sites Database is available at www.oregonheritage.org. The State Historic Preservation Office is part of Heritage and Community Programs of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. For more information on the Oregon Historic Sites Database contact Cara Kaser at cara.kaser@state.or.us or (503) 986-0670 or visit www.oregonheritage.org.
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| Preservation Plan |
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10-13 Oregon SHPO releases 2011-2016 Statewide Historic Preservation Plan
A new historic preservation plan to guide preservation activities in the state emphasizes integrating cultural resource management into the planning processes of state and local jurisdictions and agencies across Oregon.
"It is time for preservation to be taken for granted – by developers, by city planners, by legislators, by the public," says Chrissy Curran, associate deputy for the Oregon State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO). "It is ready to stand on its own merits. It has proven itself to be an enduring, collective value."
While the plan is a requirement of the National Park Service, which provides a substantial portion of the SHPO’s funding, it is also a valuable tool for the SHPO and for preservation constituents throughout Oregon.
The plan spotlights overarching issues, sets goals for the state and its preservation partners, and details a series of objectives to be collectively met over the next five years. The plan emphasizes:
- Identification and surveying of historic resources, and expanding public access to survey data;
- disaster preparedness;
- outreach and education;
- property types most at risk;
- heritage partnerships and networking;
and reinforcement of the overall goal, which is to integrate cultural resources management into the planning processes in Oregon.
A public comment period this past spring concluded the plan’s public process, which began in 2010 with a series of regional workshops and a heritage needs assessment survey that together garnered close to 700 responses. The National Park Service has approved the plan.
So, grab Oregon’s updated historic preservation plan and learn more about how preservation efforts across the state are faring, how to better leverage each other’s work, what preservation products get the best results, and how best to promote excellent stewardship of this state’s irreplaceable cultural resources.
The plan is available at Oregon Preservation Plan, by contacting heritage.programs@state.or.us or by contacting the State Historic Preservation Office at 503-986-0690. The State Historic Preservation Office is part of the Heritage Programs Division of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department.
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