What's New - Spring 2008
B&O Railroad Depot is Open
The rehabilitation of the B&O Railroad Depot in Mount Vernon, Ohio, is officially complete! The depot was in operation on November 25, 1907. The 4,200 sf facility is constructed in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. On October 18, 2007, almost exactly 100 years later, the facility celebrated with a gala opening. HDC first started work on the building in 2001, with the completion of a conditions assessment and estimate. HDC was subsequently commissioned to design the rehabilitation of the vacant railroad station for use as a public assembly space. The program included a meeting room on the upper floor along with a historical train memorabilia display room, catering kitchen, reception room, and offices on the first floor. The rehabilitation included building and life safety code upgrades, as well as handicap accessibility. New electrical, plumbing, and mechanical systems were also installed.
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Gala Opening |
New Exterior Night |
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Eligibility and Case Alternative Report for the NSA Crane Chapel
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HDC historians completed a survey of the Naval Support Activity (NSA) Crane Chapel, Building 1892, at NSA Crane, Indiana. The purpose of the project was to assess the eligibility of the building for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The chapel was constructed in late 1945 and is a small, modest wood-frame U.S. Navy Colonial Revival chapel design, with multi-pane windows, a pedimented entrance with a recessed porch, and an octagonal belfry with a spire. The interior features wood scissors-type trusses, Gothic Revival pews, stained glass in the chancel, painted wood pilasters, and yellow pine paneling. The chapel was found to be eligible for the NRHP and HDC subsequently completed a Case Alternatives Report (CAR) to provide recommendations for the best course of action given specific economic considerations, the cost-effective use of public monies, compliance with federal regulations, stewardship of historical properties, and support of the mission of NSA Crane. |
Cultural Resources Planning Services for Naval Facilities on the East Coast
HDC staff will spend the spring conducting fieldwork and archival research associated with producing an updated Integrated Cultural Resources Management Plan for the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine. Work will include an inventory of previously unsurveyed structures, a guide to the character defining features of the buildings, historic landscape inventory, a GIS component, and the updated management plan. The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard contains historic buildings ranging in date from ca. 1820 through the 1970s, and was the location of the 1905 signing of the peace treaty that ended the Russo-Japanese War. The base currently overhauls, repairs, and modernizes Los Angeles class submarines.
Phase II Archaeological Assessment of 33DL2228
HDC archaeologists recently completed the fieldwork portion of a Phase II assessment of the prehistoric component of 33DL2228. This work is associated with the City of Columbus Delaware Reservoir project in northwestern Delaware County. Archaeological fieldwork resulted in the identification of four pit features containing pottery, animal bones, carbonized plants remains, and small amounts of stone tool making waste materials. These features are within 20 meters of the pit feature identified in a shovel test unit in December 2006. Radiocarbon dating indicates that the site was occupied between A.D. 1000 and A.D. 1300.
Archaeological Conservancy Mapping
HDC archaeologists recently completed the fieldwork portion of a pro bono project for The Archaeology Conservancy, conducting high density topographic mapping at the Fort Salem Earthworks in Highland County. This project is the second pro bono project HDC has performed for The Archaeology Conservancy, following a magnetometer survey of a Pennsylvania site that was under consideration for purchase. The resulting map will be the first produced of the earthworks since the nineteenth century and will provide accurate topographic information about the site layout, aiding the Conservancy in the future care and preservation of the site.
HDC Welcomes Karly the Beagle
HDC welcomed a second beagle to the office in November, 2007 after Senior Historian Roy Hampton adopted Karly from the Franklin County Animal Shelter. Karly is approximately six years old and was found wandering the streets of Columbus. Karly is one of the sweetest dogs ever and quickly became wrestling buddies with Donut. Click here to see a short clip of our daily entertainment posted on YouTube (Donut is wearing her St. Paddy’s Day bandanna).