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Vol. 17, No. 3, September 1979 - "Historical Preservation"


(pp. 1 - 6)

Royce E. Walters

Indiana County Historic Preservation Committee

Indiana, Pennsylvania


Abstract

Historic Preservation is no longer the province of the proverbial "little old lady in tennis shoes." What was once the purview of the elite, the antiquarian-minded, and the public-spirited has become a broader, wider movement. At the first state-wife preservation conference, sponsored by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission at Camp Hill in January 1979, nearly 1,000 people attended. What a change from the past! While we can rejoice that the movement has broadened its scope and has received much greater public support, that in and of itself poses some problems and even some dangers, as will be shown later.



(pp. 7 - 12)

George E. Stetson
Bloomsburg State College

Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania


Abstract 

William Brinton, the Younger, was born in 1670 of Quaker parents living in Nether Gournall, Sedgeley Parish, Staffordshire, England. In 1684 he accompanied his parents to Birmingham Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. According to family tradition, the first winter was spent in a "cave: dug in the south side of a hill and roofed with timber. The next summer the son helped his father build a house of four,-inch-thick poplar planks.



(pp. 12 - 18)

Allan H. Steenhusen

John Milner Associates, Architects and Planners

West Chester, Pennsylvania


Abstract

Bethlehem's Main Street area possesses a long and impressive history as an urban center. It was a hub in the original Moravian town plan, containing centers of government, religion and commerce. "Der Platz," as a major portion of the present day Main Street was originally referred to, was a large open area which served as the gathering place for the populace and became a center of social and political activity. Even in its early days, Main Street was an area of mixed use; a center of cultural events, innovative industry and retailing revolving around this open space. Main Street has evolved, but remains the potential for recapturing much of its original character in mood if not in complete physical detail. The street is an integral part of a diverse and nationally significant historic district. The Moravian heritage is impressively represented in a variety of eighteenth century residential and industrial buildings to the south, and Main Street survives as an example of Bethlehem's physical and cultural evolution. It is endowed with buildings which date from the mid-eighteenth century - such as the soon to be restored Sun Inn; early nineteenth century - the Sebastion Goundie House; and Victorian period commercial structures - Young Folks Bazaar and the Tom Bass store. Consequently, the true architectural value of Main Street lies in the fact that it possesses a variety of distinctive structures spanning over 200 years of architectural style. 




(pp. 19 - 24)

George S. Shirey, Associate Professor
Clarion State College

Clarion, Pennsylvania


Abstract

It is thought that iron was first made in Pennsylvania in the 1690's. However, it was not until approximately one hundred years later that the first stone furnace in western Pennsylvania was built in Fayette County in 1790. It was known as the Alliance Furnace. Other stone furnaces were soon built in the same county and spawned an "iron industry" which quickly spread to other counties in the region. By the time the era of iron furnace building came to a close in the second half of the 1800's, one hundred and ninety furnaces had been constructed. Table I shows historically that the decade of 1840-1850 experienced the greatest proliferation of stone furnaces in production in western Pennsylvania. OF the 190 built in the region, 84 or 44 percent, became operational during this ten year period. After this highwater point was reached, only 25 more stone furnaces were ever constructed.



(pp. 25 - 32)

Robert A. Davis
Slippery Rock State College

Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania


Abstract 

In the fall of 1976 an undergraduate course in historic preservation was created and placed in the Geography curriculum at Slippery Rock State College. The reason for the introduction of this new course was based upon the growing importance of the historic preservation movement in the United States, and a recognition that the course would support two areas of student concentration, Human Ecology and Rural-Urban Planning. It was necessary to design a one-semester, three credit course that would provide undergraduate students with a general introduction to historic preservation. The purpose of this article is to discuss the major themes and same of the methods employed in teaching that course. Historic preservation is a new academic subject. Most of us, in preparing to teach a course on the subject, had no models or comparative examples to utilize. What is presented here is one type of model, which could possibly serve as a guide or departure point for other geographers who are faced with the task of preparing and teaching a course in historic preservation.



The Pennsylvania Geographical Society exists to promote effective geographic teaching, research, and literacy.


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