Vernacular Architecture Forum VAN Summer 2019

Letter from the Editor

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 17:00:00 GMT

Welcome to the Summer Issue of VAN. Feel free to use this link if you just want to scroll through all the stories directly on the website, or take a look below for highlights of the issue with links directly to each story. And don’t forget, if you want to see a caption just put your cursor on the image. This summer issue is overflowing with great updates, opportunities, resources and articles.

Featured in this issue are reports and reflections from the annual conference “Landscapes of Succession” held in Philadelphia May 29-June 1 where we hosted two Access Awardees, three groups of student Ambassadors, and celebrated awards (link) for publications, advocacy, and achievements. The VAF board also adopted a mission statement at the meeting, and a new President, Claire Dempsey, began her term in office.

Members have also shared wonderful news of publications, fellowships, and retirements. In publications news, the Summer Bibliography is packed with useful resources that contribute to vernacular studies. If you are thinking of contributing to the scholarly conversation, consider submitting to the VAF Journal Buildings & Landscapes. Thanks as always for the contributions to the newsletter, please keep them coming!

Christine Henry, Newsletter Editor

VAF Board Announces New Mission Statement

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 16:45:00 GMT

by Zachary Violette

While its bylaws outline the purpose of the organization, the VAF never had a proper mission statement to succinctly articulate what it is and what it stands for. At its November 2018 meeting the Board of Directors tasked then-president Louis Nelson with forming an ad-hoc committee of five to craft a pithy statement, which would be useful in fundraising and recruitment efforts. The move was part of the strategic planning and evaluation that VAF leadership has been engaged in over the past few years: the 40^th anniversary of the founding of VAF, combined with the rapid growth of the endowment, has prompted a good deal of organizational soul searching and planning for the future. Reflecting the diversity of the organization, the ad-hoc committee represented a variety of ages and professional backgrounds. Members included Catherine Bishir, Jobie Hill, Ian Stevenson, and Zachary Violette, as well as Louis Nelson as chair.

The group started its work by examining a long list of nonprofit mission statements. These were noteworthy for their brevity, some containing only three or five words, most with less than 25. The committee set for itself a goal of not more than 20 words. Each member was asked to send to Nelson an initial suggestion of a complete statement, which he then anonymously compiled, and honed into a single working draft. This draft prompted vigorous debate among committee members about core aspects of VAF’s purpose: what is the role of historic preservation? How can diversity be properly acknowledged? How does VAF relate to other academic and preservation organizations? After weeks of exchange a draft statement was circulated to the full board in early April. While the committee’s final proposal was longer than many of the other statements that were the initial inspiration, capturing the nuance of the VAF’s mission, it was decided, was more important than brevity for its own sake. After a lengthy discussion, it was approved, with minor changes, at the spring board meeting. (Because it will not be inserted in the bylaws, approval of the membership at the Annual Meeting was not required.) The approved new mission statement reads:

The Vernacular Architecture Forum promotes a broad and inclusive interpretation of the built environment to encourage a deeper understanding of how and why people make and use buildings and landscapes. Working in archives, in communities, and in the field, our members support the preservation of everyday buildings and affirm their important role in the lives of people and places.

Member Profile: Meet Claire Dempsey, New VAF President

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 16:30:00 GMT

It has been my pleasure to serve VAF over the years as a Board member, an annual meeting committee member, a founder of the New England Chapter, and now as president -- an honor that genuinely took me by surprise. I have been a member since the beginning – the pink and blue mimeo phase of VAN production – and have been lucky enough to attend 34 of our 40 meetings. It has been through VAF that I identify and distinguish myself professionally, giving me an intellectual home for my work as a practitioner and an educator. Like so many in VAF’s first generation, I am not sure what my career would have looked like without it.

I came to vernacular architecture from an undergraduate major in anthropology and a brief stop-over in historical archaeology. I think my first material culture book purchases were Ivor Noel Hume’s Historical Archaeology and A Guide to the Artifacts of Colonial America, followed on shortly by Henry Glassie’s Pattern in the Material Folk Culture of the Eastern United States. My graduate training was in the American & New England Studies Program at BU, a fortuitous choice that turned out to be a cordial environment at an exceptional moment. The Program had been an early adopter of expanding the common history-and-literature model to include art and material culture. The history faculty, enamored of mentalites, thick description, and of course history from the bottom, were demanding but welcomed those of us who focused on things. Together with adjuncts from the region’s museums, libraries, and historic sites, many also offering internships to augment our course work, these scholars introduced us to an extraordinary mix of methods and approaches. And on top of all that, Summer Institutes brought visiting faculty and students to Boston, significantly broadening our professional networks.

Because of these diverse opportunities, I was introduced to the work of individuals who would soon found and shape VAF, and I am enormously grateful to have been able to join the group in its early years. In VAF, I saw the sort of holistic and interdisciplinary work I imagined was possible but which was only just becoming a reality. VAN, our journals, and our meetings put me in touch with other students of the cultural landscape whose work was creative and persuasive, an inspiration for someone who has been more of a consumer than a producer of scholarship. At the beginning, VAFers’ interests were so various that I was not entirely convinced that such a motley collection could cohere. But over time, and in all likelihood because of VAF, my own interests expanded. I began to see that VAF’s strength is how its programs and its members demonstrate over and over that it is all interesting.

Of course it was our meetings and tours that sealed the deal. Amazing places selected for our attention, with transportation, food, and beverages all included. I would be remiss if I did not also note how important it is to me that our annual gatherings are not just informative, but a really great time. My time at VAF meetings is spent looking, listening, thinking, and debating, sure, but also laughing. Every time I visit a new place with VAF, I return home tired but re-energized, with better insights into my own region. That should keep me coming back for a good long while.

Auburn University Ambassadors Reflect on VAF Conference

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 16:15:00 GMT

By design, our group of ambassadors from Auburn University were a diverse crew. We were split between history and architecture, graduate and undergraduate, and within our own areas of specialty and interest. The experiences of these students then--told below in their own words--represent the capaciousness of VAF and its multi and interdisciplinary approaches. Each student found moments of experience at the conference or in the city that they could view through their own areas of study, or use to expand their perception of the built environment.

As a recent graduate of Auburn University’s architecture program, I was incredibly excited to have the opportunity for such a unique and thorough exploration of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was clear from the beginning that this conference was special and the people I met throughout the weekend gave constant testament to the character and hospitality of the event. I felt incredibly privileged to attend this event as a student ambassador, and was blown away by all the things I was able to see. The other attendees, some architects, historians, or preservationists to name a few, were so quick to answer my (many) questions on our tours. We were able to see many historic houses and townhomes and were welcomed and shown around most graciously by each and every host. I think the most amazing experience was walking through Elfreth’s Alley. The row houses we saw were absolutely stunning. Even more than that, it was incredibly encouraging to meet the people who live in and maintain these historic beauties. For me, coming from a classroom culture that really pushes modern architecture, it was refreshing to be in a place with people who love and value historic architecture. Everywhere we went I felt like I was given a behind-the-scenes look and it was such an incredible experience. I hope this is the first of many future VAF experiences for me.

--Fox Carlson

As a historian of religion, I quickly chose the Southwest and Darby tour for the VAF Conference in Philadelphia. Being able to go to Bartram’s Garden and touring the Quaker buildings in Darby was easily worth the trip alone, and seeing old homes and churches where people have worshipped for decades was a special experience for me. All of the other conference events made it an outstanding experience as well, especially for a graduate student. I really enjoyed being able to meet people from different places, schools, and professions who all had a desire for studying and understanding the effect of space and place on people. The panels covered such a wide array of time, geography, and spaces, from farm ponds across the United States to altars in the rooms of domestic workers in Venezuela. Not only did these presentations stretch my understanding of space and architecture, they interested me in subjects I had never thought about before. This type of study is different than what I have been exposed to in most of my classes or work, and really widened my eyes to the effect it could have on my own work studying religious spaces and who is welcome where. Everyone I met was also extremely helpful and welcoming. The VAF Conference has easily been my favorite conference experience so far, socially, culturally, and academically the environment was engaging.

--Caroline Greer

My first VAF not only influenced my interest in the vernacular but also pushed me to reconsider purposeful relationships in my research. As a 2019 Ambassador, the Philadelphia Conference provided a dynamic space to interact with experts in a variety of fields promoting intellectual exchange. Though I am in a history program at Auburn, the differing perspectives on Architecture, Historic Interpretation, Museum Studies, and American Studies pushed my scholarly framework to move beyond academic departmental confinements. The conference allowed me to gain vital professional growth and intellectual perspectives, while the Ambassador program offset a majority of the cost, emphasizing the importance of open and philanthropic academic places that push for younger scholars’ active participation in the organization.

The city of Philadelphia provided a great landscape to study as a first time VAFer! I found the tension between the complex urban landscape and the rural foundations of the city fascinating. The bus tours emphasized the early reliance on agriculture through the remaining farmhouses and barns we saw on the Germantown tour. For a rural historian, the agrarian realities of the city underline the false divisions placed on the American landscape. On Friday, the walking tours introduced me to numerous nooks and crannies across the city that caught my attention. Elfreth’s Alley stressed the importance of historic preservation in a city that is continually modernizing. This idyllic street transports visitors to Colonial America while placed between massive skyscrapers and apartment buildings. On Saturday, the paper presentations displayed the vast array of disciplines that converge at the conference. From rural spaces to urban life, each panel pointed to understudied and overlooked areas on the landscape. The atmosphere at each panel I attended was accepting, encouraging, and stimulating. The studies of the built environment throughout the week not only made me excited to attend next year but also hopeful to participate in the future. Thank you for advancing scholars and investing in my future.

--Ryan Kline

As a social historian, I initially felt a slight degree of trepidation in attending the VAF conference. I was not immediately sure how I would be able to apply my experience at the conference to my own research, which primarily examines how neighborhoods in both New York City and San Francisco became increasingly gentrified after the mass migration of young, middle-class, predominately white youth in the late 1960s. Attending VAF and talking to other scholars of space and architecture encouraged me to think about gentrification as a process enacted upon buildings and spaces. On the second day of the conference, I participated in the Germantown bus tour, which allowed me to explore how space could serve as a form of resistance to gentrification. One of the more interesting aspects of touring Philadelphia was seeing porch culture in action; blocks of rowhomes with people socializing outside on their porches seemed to represent a means of resistance to gentrification by reinforcing a sense of community. The many private tours and hospitable homeowners made the conference experience extremely intimate and exciting; because of its interdisciplinary and unconventional approach, I returned to Auburn with a new outlook on my own research that focuses on the relationship between the built --environment and people.

--Lauren Mata

Philadelphia is perhaps the truest of American cities, embodying the endurance of history, the grit of industry, and the pursuit of the self-made family within a slightly leaning composition of red brick, white trim, and blue shutters. The VAF Conference was a meticulously researched survey of these core American pillars throughout everyday Philadelphia. The city is comprised of architecture that is both unassumingly symmetrical and intentionally ad hoc, giving an identifiable fingerprint to the ubiquitous row houses. With tours through attics and basements, the conference celebrated the behind-the-scenes spaces of real life.

The longest lasting impression of the VAF conference was the varied conglomeration of individuals in attendance. From architects to preservationists to historians, every person was the utmost of welcoming encouragement to this recent graduate and first-time attendee. Early on a Thursday morning in late May, I found myself standing in the backyard of a private residence in the outskirts of Philadelphia next to a complete stranger. He turned to me and said, “I love the backs of houses. They’re crooked and perfect.” With that quirky statement, I knew I was among people who love buildings and the individuals who use them just as much as I do.

--Kate Mazade

University of Delaware Student Ambassador Memories of VAF

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 16:10:00 GMT

This year's VAF conference provided me with a wonderful opportunity to learn about Philadelphia's historic architecture. Friday's walking tours showcased the vibrancy and diversity of Philadelphia row houses. The row houses on tour encompassed a breadth of architectural styles and periods, reflecting the city's larger historical patterns. I found the close proximity of tiny, working-class row houses with large, high-style row houses particularly fascinating. The conference paper sessions also covered a breadth of topics pertaining to the built environment. I thought the variety of interdisciplinary approaches were refreshing and stimulating.

--Mary Fesak, American Civilization PhD Program

Despite having resided in the greater Philadelphia area for more than half my life, I had not been familiar with the history of Germantown and the historic resources located there. The collection of buildings on the bus tour, and the access we had to them, was informative and very engaging. The walking tour of center city rowhouses offered interior access to an extensive and well curated collection of this iconic Philadelphia building type, with in-depth research on each that I'm still reviewing weeks after the conference.

The paper presentations were interesting and offered different viewpoints across several historic preservation themes. In my studies, I had previously read articles by several researchers at the conference, so it was fascinating to meet them in person. As my own objectives in the field are focused on community development and public outreach, the format of the tours and presentations themselves afforded me inspiration and ideas for sharing architectural history with the public. My first VAF conference proved to be an enriching way to learn about the Philadelphia area, network with other academics and professionals, and learn from the work of preservationists across the US and beyond.

--Jamie Magee, Graduate Certificate in Historic Preservation

As a graduate student at the University of Delaware and Winterthur Museum, I spend as much time as I can exploring Philadelphia’s buildings and landscapes. When I learned that the VAF’s annual meeting would be held in Philadelphia this year, I grew excited to visit (and re-visit) sites around the city with like-minded students and scholars. As someone passionate about everyday buildings and landscapes and the stories in their construction, use, and memory, VAF provided me with an exciting and intellectually stimulating weekend that I know I won’t forget. From exploring private homes along Elfreth’s Alley to hearing the newest research in architectural history, preservation, and material culture studies, the opportunity to attend VAF as an ambassador introduced me to buildings, landscapes, friends, and mentors that will continue to inspire and inform my own research.

--Bethany J. McGlyn, Winterthur Program in American Material Culture

The VAF Conference in Philadelphia was an ideal introduction to the organization and its important work. The meeting struck a perfect balance between tours, papers, and social opportunities.

With their focus on successive layers of Philadelphia’s history and built environment, the tours really helped me to see the city in ways I might not otherwise have. I learned a lot about cultural change in Germantown with a stop at an unassuming wig shop on Chelten Avenue and a conversation with the scholar who had grown up at the shop. The Concord School House and Upper Burying Ground in Germantown stood out for their ability to illuminate burial customs and the history of education in the Philadelphia area. On the second day, a look inside the houses along Elfreth’s Alley was exceptional and offered perspective on the city’s colonial roots and long history. I was further excited to explore a townhouse designed by I. M. Pei on Society Hill and talk with the home’s owner. Because of its location just across from a glorious 19^th century row home on the tour, I might not have taken the time to really see Pei’s utilitarian gem. Overall, I appreciated the self-guided nature of the tours, which offered participants the freedom to explore at our own pace. Residents and occupants of buildings featured in the tour were so generous with their time, space, and knowledge.

The paper sessions made clear just how broad the field is and offered a window on the variety of research in progress. Throughout the day, I found myself wishing I could be in two or three places at once. In general, the conference offered an unparalleled opportunity to meet scholars and practitioners in the field, both more formally on paper day and by chance along tour routes, during meals, and at receptions. It was truly a rewarding experience.

The Ambassadors program is such a generous way to make the field accessible to newcomers and I am thankful to the VAF for offering these awards. Additionally, I am grateful to the conference organizers and volunteers who put so much time and energy into making the meeting a success.

--Andreya Mihaloew, Graduate Certificate in Historic Preservation

It was a privilege and treat to receive an Ambassador Award to attend this year’s VAF Conference. The final day’s paper sessions particularly stood out to me. As I made my way from presentation to presentation in the conference hall at the University of Pennsylvania, two matters in particular struck me as truly remarkable. Firstly and obviously, the presenters’ synthesis of their fieldwork and research across a wide array of time periods, regions, and cultures was impressive. Not only did I leave with my little notebook filled with notes and ideas, but I also left inspired. As someone just entering the field, watching these presentations showed me the goal toward which I am working. Someday I hope to join among those ranks of presenters. Secondly, the sense of scholarly camaraderie and genuine community stood out to me throughout the conference. People put forth thought-provoking questions and critiques in the presentations, commended each other on their work, and seemed delighted to be gathered together. Having attended my first VAF Conference now, I took those first steps into this special group of like-minded people. I am beyond grateful to have had this opportunity, and I hope to go to many more VAF Conferences in the future.

--Elizabeth Palms, Winterthur Program in American Material Culture

My first VAF conference was truly one for the books! From the moment I arrived with my classmates, I felt the welcoming sense of community that this interdisciplinary conference seems to generate, energized by the attendees' enthusiasm to unlock some of the stories of the everyday in Philadelphian architecture. Philly is a familiar city to me, but the unique opportunity for behind-the-scenes access to so many historic spaces allowed me to see the city like I never had before. Friday's self-guided tours took me into some amazing interiors, but my personal favorite was by far Arch Street Meeting House. Our group sat looking closely at graffiti carved into the backs of pews by Quaker boys in the balcony of the meeting house, which felt pretty close to stepping back in time. All in all, I am incredibly grateful to have had the chance to experience VAF for the first time, and I hope it won't be my last time attending.

--Emily Whitted, Winterthur Program in American Material Culture

Experiences from the UMW Student Ambassadors

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 16:00:00 GMT

The University of Mary Washington (UMW) Ambassadors share their personal experiences below, but also had a chance to talk with many conference attendees about their own reflections on VAF. This group of students continued the work started by the Ambassadors from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee last year; using the free app PixStori, they collected short interviews from 21 attendees to find out what VAF means to them in our new initiative WeAreVAF. Thanks to all who participated and shared their thoughts!

This spring I was fortunate enough to attend the Vernacular Architecture Forum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was my first time attending the conference, but I was immediately comforted by how welcoming everyone I met was. I was initially nervous about going on the day trips by myself, but soon forgot my worries when I began talking with longtime VAF members. My favorite part of the conference was meeting people who practice preservation professionally and hearing about their careers. I also really enjoyed studying the houses and site visits with other members and hearing about their perspectives that were influenced by their different educational or work backgrounds. I really liked that the conference is centered on vernacular architecture because you get to know the city you’re visiting from a very intimate point of view. This was an experience that I truly loved, and I am definitely considering becoming a VAF member. I can’t wait to attend another conference!

--Brenden Bowman

As a VAF ambassador from the University of Mary Washington, I had the pleasure of meeting many of the conference’s attendees, those who were ‘first-timers’ like myself, and others who have attended for years. In meeting innumerable VAFers, I began to understand what exactly VAF meant. To me, VAF is an organization of people who are passionate about understanding the everyday built environment in a holistic fashion; it is a collection of professionals and scholars who bring together their personal experiences as students, professors, public historians, architects, preservationists, and numerous others, in order to further the interpretation and protection of vernacular architecture.

Being that it was not only my first time at a VAF conference, but my first time being at any conference at all, I was both nervous and excited for what was to come. But after the Opening Reception my nervousness was quelled as I met conference-goer after conference-goer, all as eager as the next to not only welcome me to VAF, but also to speak with me and to share their stories of their studies and of their careers with me. That, for me, was a continued theme of the conference, the idea of the story, of a shared, cathartic experience. It was that idea which connected the narratives of the historic landscapes the conference introduced to us with the experiences we all felt together as VAFers exploring the vernacular built environment. This was exemplified by thursday’s bus tours which plunged us all into the depths of Philadelphia’s long and storied histories. For myself, I experienced the Tacony and Northeast Philadelphia tour, a trip which saw us traverse two company towns; the Kensington development which supported the Dyottville Glassworks and the town of Tacony which grew out of the Disston Saw Works. These tours propelled countless conversations with my fellow VAFers as we explored landscapes, basements and attics together, as we not only learned more about our built environment, but about each other as well.

It is these shared experiences which made the 2019 Vernacular Architecture Forum conference as enjoyable and as memorable as it was. For an undergraduate like myself, it was both joyful and inspiring to see so many students, professionals, and scholars who I shared common interests with and whom I could have so many vivid conversations with. I cannot wait for my next opportunity to attend another VAF conference, to see previously unknown-to-me vernacular landscapes and to share my experiences and have experiences shared with me. I thank you all for welcoming myself and my fellow ambassadors.

--Garek Hannigan

In Philadelphia, we visited unique buildings and sites with rich histories. I went on the Tacony Tour of northeast Philadelphia, where I was able to explore the city’s industrial history, from factory worker housing to the Disston Saw Works, a real functioning factory. Next, we were able to tour private homes, from exteriors to basements to attics. Nothing could have prepared me for access into the basements and attics of private homes around Philadelphia! The best part of this section of the conference was being able to listen to professionals point out details and offer their opinions in each structure we visited. I enjoyed listening to their insight and learned a lot. The tours helped give me a better sense of what life what like for workers at the turn of the century by experiencing the built environment firsthand. After the first day of tours, I was shocked by how tired I was, but I was also eager for the next day of walking tours.

On the second day of tours we visited a variety of places in the central part of the city. The most memorable part of the tours was the historic graffiti done by children in the Arch Street Meeting House. By shining light on the wooden pews in the section where children sat, letters and notes carved into the wood became visible. It was a fun reminder that children (and people) weren’t so different in the past.

In closing, I would like to thank the Vernacular Architecture Forum for providing this wonderful opportunity to spend time with likeminded people, whom appreciate buildings for all that they are worth, and its members for being so kind. I learned so much and I had a great time meeting members and seeing the awesome sites!

--Emily Whaley

WeAreVAF

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 15:40:00 GMT

Below are a series of interviews conducted by the UMW Ambassadors to the VAF Philadelphia Conference. It is a wonderful collection of thoughts and reflections from VAF members, long-time and new, about what VAF means to them. Just click on the link below the image and enjoy!

Armandroff.mp4	Bell.mp4	Brandt.mp4
Buggeln.mp4	Diehlmann and Apple.mp4	Fesak.mp4
Fisher.mp4	Fortenberry.mp4	George.mp4
Ghoshal.mp4	Grotjan.mp4	Herics.mp4
Hudson.mp4	Kurtze.mp4	Lauer.mp4
Littman.mp4	McMurry.mp4	Millman.mp4
Van Slyck.mp4	Worthington.mp4	Yanni.mp4

Getting Familiar with American Vernacular Architecture

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 15:20:00 GMT

by Access Awardee Mariana Kaplinska

My visit to the US through the Fulbright Program in 2018-2019 (Historic Preservation, UPenn) is a long-term adventure for me, which is now close to its end. Coming back to Ukraine, I will keep all the experiences I gained attending classes, lecturing, meeting people, traveling, visiting museums, watching everyday life and business in various communities. There are many things to remember and the VAF Conference, which has been held this year in Philadelphia, and which I have attended for the first time, is definitely one of them. Staying in Philadelphia since November 2018--with a number of trips outside the state--I had already had some time to introduce myself to the city, its architecture, history and urban environment. For my stranger’s eye Philadelphia appeared to be previously a rich and ambitious city, which has lost its weight, but the past luster can still be recognized in many ways, though some neighborhoods are in decline. So now, it is about the historicity and present day, attempts to develop the city as a comfortable living, creative, and business place. The other interesting thing to observe is the multifacetedness of the city. There are gorgeous villas and modest working class houses, industrial buildings, bigger and smaller row houses and high-rise buildings, and going beyond the architectural typology, diverse ethnic enclaves (like Chinatown, Polish, Ukrainian, Italian neighborhoods and many others), parks and gardens, excellent food.

Being familiar with all this in general, I was happy to look aside my usual routes (one of them, the Skuykill River Trail, is really beautiful and my favorite), and visit a number of houses on the tours, in particular those affording indoor access. Doing my best to visit as many buildings as possible, I however did not manage to see them all. The buildings revealed so many interesting details, I had to make an effort every time to leave so as not to miss another one. That is why the 2-volume walking tour guide was a great idea. All I have seen impressed me and inspired as an architect and a researcher. The conference was a few days of learning and fun, exploration of basements and attics, architectural shapes and constructions, surviving or rearranged interiors, analysis of the signs of changes and succession.

Then the paper sessions came, and considering them, I believe that among the other important things that move our world is a live, open-minded conversation with professionals willing to share, to hear, and perceive. Besides the presentation of research, this is exactly what scientific conferences are about, and their influence goes far beyond a scientific result itself. The VAF Conference was such a good occasion to discuss architecture in the richness of its images, materiality and functions, and without the preconceptions about its prestige.

The Enduring Bricks of Philadelphia and the Silence of History

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 15:10:00 GMT

by Access Awardee Jose R. Vasquez

“You take delight not in a city’s seven or seventy wonders, but in the answer, it gives to a question of yours.” --Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino

It would seem as if the house at 122 East Rittenhouse street could not be farther away, socially, culturally or in style, from the affluent estates of Germantown. Yet its walls reveal a layered history compellingly familiar to all of us whose work intersects with the vernacular. The house is one of four nearly identical houses built between 1848 and 1850 on the same street by a house carpenter named Mr. Jacop Roop Jr, as investment properties. As austere as they may appear presently their stories are nothing of the sort, in fact they exemplified the essence of the 2018 VAF conference Landscapes of Succession. They have provided shelter to individuals specializing in various trades, a baker and a house carpenter among others. Successive occupants encapsulate an ethnic cross section of Philadelphia’s population for over a century, Irish Americans, Italians, and African American families.

According to Dr. Camille Wells, “… part of what attracts us to old buildings is their insistence on communicating, in some outmoded dialect we entirely do not understand, the energy and purpose, the achievements and hopes, the disappointments and hardships, of those who made and used them.”

Wandering through Philadelphia’s storied streets defined by rowhouses, discreet alleyways, and former agricultural and industrial landscapes I was beguiled by the possibilities, challenges, and paradoxes embodied by vernacular architecture. The enduring bricks of Philadelphia, the wood carved details of porches and rotting cornices, and the skillfully chiseled mantelpieces furnished my mind with textural imagery and questions that I will be passing on to my architecture students in Miami.

The commonplace, built, repurposed, or sadly derelict underlined my experiences as a first time VAF conference attendee. In Germantown my peripatetic tour wanderings took me, and got me lost at times, from proverbial “high” to “low brow” places and the spaces in between. From Cliveden, a Georgian 18^th century country house, to the working-class Morton neighborhood, and to the 19^th century upper middle-class enclave of Bayton hill, I found myself, literally and metaphorically speaking, searching beneath the stones and fading wallpapers tackling the silencing of history. This concept was formulated by Haitian scholar Michel-Rolph Throuillot in reference to those events, peoples, and places deliberately sidelined or suppressed by “other(s)” historical narratives. The VAF walking tours and the conference paper sessions facilitated a rereading of these histories, hence lending them a voice at a critical moment in our national history when these histories can’t longer be overlooked. Visiting Philadelphia’s contested sceneries of succession, I got my fill of architectural details, spatial impressions, and scholarly discussions in the context of rough streets, manicured lawns, and hot attics. In company of seasoned VAF members, now new friends, I got to experience this city, as privileged outsider. I came across places that could not be diametrically different, like the workers houses on East Rittenhouse street and the countless anonymous blocks of rowhouses defining the urban fabric that I scrutinized during the conference’s periphery bus tours. They spoke a shared language and experience which was insistent in its humanity. I cherished the generous hospitality bestowed on us by homeowners allowing us unfettered access to their dwellings and enthusiastically answered our questions. During the conference second day I crisscrossed the city in a “long walk” experiment, or rather what I would call rowing walks, heading from the University of Pennsylvania and walking to several rowhouse neighborhoods and urban networks west of Rittenhouse square. I thought that the City Hall was worth a detour ( it was!) and found myself in the midst of a community party celebrating Walt Whitman's 200^th birthday, then looked up at Mr. William Penn and from there found my way to examine Elfreth’s Alley, with its shared building stories to conduct more rowing amongst the red vastness of the city of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection.

The commonplace fostered unique experiences often interspersed by serendipitous moments. They happened while touching masonry walls, listening to someone explain American colonial furniture wood joinery, or watching Dr. Richard Longstreth, this year's Henry Glassie awardee, under the drizzling rain taking photographs of Stenton’s colonial revival garden. It was while at Stenton, amongst the city’s earliest surviving and well-preserved buildings, where I became acquainted with Dinah’s life, an enslaved servant whose resilient spirit helped disperse the silence of the walls making history vividly relevant again, thus, reminding me that old buildings and frayed walls draw us closer with kind relatedness as we endeavor to make sense of our entangled present and silenced stories.

VAF Announces Awards at Annual Meeting in Philadelphia

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 15:05:00 GMT

Following tradition at VAF, the 2019 awardees were announced with much fanfare. Each awardee was recognized for their contributions to VAF and to the field of vernacular architecture studies. Please click on the links below to read the full inspiring stories and view the evocative images of each awardee.

Advocacy Award: In 2019 VAF honored Dick Pencek, emeritus teaching scholar at Pennsylvania State University

Award for Local Advocacy: In 2019 VAF created a new award to recognize a local organization in the place of the annual meeting and Hidden City, Philadelphia was the first recipient.

Catherine W. Bishir Prize: This year there were two winners of the 2019 Bisher Prize.

Maire O’Neill Conrad, Professor of Architecture and Design at Montana State University was honored for her work on the development of farm buildings in the Northern Rockies is solidly grounded on extensive field recording, "Light on the Land: Construction revolution in farm buildings of the Northern Rockies (1890 - 1910)". Buildings & Landscapes: v. 24 i. 2 p. 58-84.

Gabrielle Berlinger, Assistant Professor of American Studies and Folklore at University of North Carolina was honored for her study of the Jewish sukkot--a temporary ritual enclosure built for the Jewish holiday commemorating the Israelites’ journey to the Promised Land, “From Ritual to Protest: Sukkot in the Garden of Hope.” Buildings & Landscapes: v. 24 i. 1 p. 1-25.

Paul E. Buchanan Award: The winner of the 2019 Paul E. Buchanan Award is the Montana African American Heritage Resources Project, for the model public outreach using interactive web-based digital media to bring together resources and people.

Abbott Lowell Cummings: The 2019 Cummings Prize was given to Christian Tagsold for his book Spaces in Translation: Japanese Gardens in the West.

Henry Glassie Award: This year's recipient for special contributions to the field is Dr. Richard Longstreth.

Field Notes: Drayton Hall, Frozen Flowers and Diamond Doorways

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 14:00:00 GMT

By Ralph Muldrow

Drayton Hall near Charleston, SC, continues to hold on to some of its secrets despite every sort of investigation. Two of those are hidden in plain sight but they raise interesting questions. Festoons of flowers often graced the stately homes of England for parties and amusements; swags of flowers intermingled with grape vines evocative of gracious pleasures. They would be hung like drapery valences over windows, doors, under cornices and on garnished overmantles bountifully. A family seat in the ‘wilderness’ would understandably emulate those niceties but as ‘frozen’ bowers. That such meticulous wooden flowers had already been innovated in three dimensions in England at such later seventeenth century mansions as Petworth House and early eighteenth century mansions such as Blenheim Palace. They are a testament to the innovative work of master carver Grinling Gibbons (1648- 1721), the Dutch born British artisan whose fantastic carved architectural elements graced London buildings, Cambridge buildings and great manor houses of the day that predate the construction of Drayton Hall (c. 1738). While Gibbons carved his decorations in limewood, the floral carvings at Drayton Hall near Charleston, SC, appear to be mahogany, including the wafer-thin flower pedals.

At the same time, false doors placed in Drayton Hall rooms contain large yet off- center diamond- shaped patterns made of blackened glazed headers that are asymmetrical with the doorway surrounds in the rooms in which they appear. Were they part of an abandoned project? Were they practice brick masonry motifs for masons to train with? They seem meant to be hidden or seldom shown ensembles. The false doors have long been missing. In the same rooms both the carved wooden flowers a-la Grinling Gibbons and the large diamond patterns co-exist… but why?

Photographically Documenting Kentucky’s Wooden Covered Bridges

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 13:00:00 GMT

by David L. Ames

I retired from the University of Delaware and moved to Louisville, Kentucky, three years ago. The city has great late nineteenth-century historic architecture, the cost of living is reasonable, and I have family here.

The best thing about being retired is being able to do what you want. For me, it has meant spending more time on my own photography. Specifically, that is large format architectural photography, which I have been shooting for several years for the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and the Historic American Landscapes Survey (HALS) of the National Park Service. These programs still require black-and-white, large format film photographs at 4”x5”, 5x7”, and 8”x10”. The archivally produced photos accompany drawings and histories and are transmitted to the Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress, where they are available at the HABS/HAER/HALS Collection online. Although I can shoot 5”x7”, I prefer 4”x5” basically because it is faster and allows for more documentation.

One of my current projects is photographically documenting four of Kentucky’s surviving twelve covered bridges, which once numbered more than 700. I am doing these for Christopher Marston, project leader of the HAER National Covered Bridge Recording Project. Although I had documented one covered bridge earlier in Maryland, I wanted to know more about the engineering and characteristics of covered bridges so I would be sure to capture their character-defining features. Because there is a large amount of literature on covered bridges, I was able to give myself a crash course on them before heading out into the field.

In researching a historic resource that’s new to me, I like to begin by developing an historic context to understand how it evolved and what its principal characteristics are. The first thing I learned was that technologically, the covered bridge is the opposite of its popular romantic, nostalgic image of a quaint, obsolete, relic of the past as reflected in such novels as The Bridges of Madison County. A recent book published by HAER, Covered Bridges and the Birth of American Engineering (2015), makes the case that the development of wooden truss bridges was significant in the early development of American civil engineering.¹ Since it was plentiful and a strong, durable, natural resource, wood was the ideal material for experimenting with bridge trusses.

Evolution of American Truss Bridges

American wooden truss bridges evolved in two broad periods—1790 to ca. 1840 and ca. 1840 to 1900. The historic era of American covered bridge building continued into the mid-twentieth century.²

The major factor driving early American bridge development was the need to carry heavier loads over longer distances in a rapidly expanding young republic, with less expensive, lighter, but stronger and longer bridges. Thus, the timber bridge evolved from a labor-intensive, hand-crafted, expensive structure to an engineered one assembled from manufactured components requiring lower skilled labor at less cost.

In the nascent period of timber bridge evolution from 1790 to 1840, bridge builders would draw upon the ancient triangular-shaped truss types: kingpost, queenpost, and multiple kingpost, to create a number of empirically-tested, innovative wooden truss bridges.

Dating from medieval times, the kingpost truss is a triangular frame with a single center post—the kingpost—flanked by diagonal braces carrying the load to the end of the bottom chord, which in turn rest on abutments at either end. A queenpost is like a two half kingposts with a horizontal cross member or top chord in between, to allow the base of the bridge to be longer and to span wider streams. The multiple kingpost is a series of kingposts or posts with braces, to span even longer distances.³

The first long-span wooden truss bridge is thought to be a bridge across the Connecticut River between Walpole, New Hampshire, and Bellows Falls, Vermont, completed in 1785. The first documented covered bridge in the United States was the 1804 Schuylkill Permanent Bridge in Philadelphia. Supported by stone arches and carrying the King’s Highway, the 3-span, 600-foot, arched wooden bridge was seen as an engineering masterpiece. Costing an extraordinary $300,000, it was covered to protect the structural timber trusses from the weather.⁴

Although there was a great deal of experimentation in the early empirical period of truss development, the two most significant American trusses developed were the arched truss and the lattice truss. Although other builders developed arched trusses, the most widely used was by Theodore Burr, who patented his design in 1806. His arch-truss consisted of a segmental arch sandwiched between two multiple kingpost trusses. With his truss, he set a then-record for a single span of 360 feet and four inches over the Susquehanna River at McCall’s Ferry, Pennsylvania.⁵ Of the thousands of Burr arch-truss bridges built, about 185 examples have survived. In Kentucky, Lewis Wernwag, another prolific builder of arched covered bridges, constructed several arch-truss bridges for the Maysville-Lexington Turnpike Company in the 1830s.

Because arched trusses were labor-intensive, expensive, and time consuming to build, “builders began looking for ways to simplify construction so that substantial bridges could be built quickly and affordably in more locations.”⁶ The answer came in the form of the lattice truss bridge invented in 1821 by the influential American architect Ithiel Town. Relatively cheap, strong, and easy to build in spans up to 200 feet, the “Town truss design consisted of a lattice of overlapping planks fastened together with treenails (wood pins).”⁷ Several early railroad bridges used the Town lattice truss, and it would continue to be used for highways well into the twentieth century.⁸

The rapid growth of railroads in the 1830-40s fueled a demand for bridges that could be rapidly constructed. This in turn stimulated greater research to understand the dynamics of trusses and how the elements of a bridge functioned under loading.

The first bridge builder to apply mathematics to the design of trusses was West Point–trained Major Stephen H. Long, who patented his Long truss in 1830. It was a “traditionally framed truss with paired diagonal braces and single counter braces crossing within each panel.”⁹ Its engineering significance was that it created permanent stresses within a structure to improve its performance under loading.¹⁰

The next major step in the development of the engineered covered bridge was the introduction of metal by substituting wrought iron ties for wood posts and braces. With the seemingly simple improvement of substituting an iron tie bar for vertical wooden post, in 1840 William Howe brought about what has been called a revolution in bridge building. Using adjustable, wrought iron vertical tension rods and cast iron angle blocks, connecting between diagonal timber braces and counter braces, the Howe truss was a major transitional structure in the development of the all metal truss.¹¹ The Howe truss also lowered the cost of bridge construction because panels could be prefabricated and shipped to construction sites. Very popular on mid-nineteenth century railroads across the country, former Chief of HAER and bridge historian Eric DeLony claimed that “the Howe truss may be the closest wooden-bridge design that ever came to perfection.”¹²

The last two most significant wood trusses developed in the nineteenth century were the Pratt truss of 1844 and Smith trusses of 1867. Patented in 1844, the truss designed by Thomas W. Pratt was a variation on the Howe Truss. It was a combination panel truss that reversed the use of iron tie rods of the Howe truss, using the tie rod for the diagonal braces rather than vertical posts.¹³ Ironically, the Pratt truss was originally developed as a composite wood and iron truss that would evolve into the most widely used all-iron and later all-steel Pratt truss.

Robert W. Smith’s 1867 wood truss designs combined strength with lightness. “They had light elongated Xs with no verticals and no iron except [for] a few bolts.”¹⁴ His light truss has been called a “titanium” breakthrough in truss design. Smith’s factory production allowed him to build several thousand bridges by prefabricating all of their components in his factory and shipping them to construction sites. Smith’s major contribution was to perfect standardization and industrialization of bridge construction.¹⁵

Kentucky’s Covered Bridges¹⁶

It is unknown how many covered bridges were in Kentucky at their peak. There may have been more than 700 at one time, but that number had dropped to 400 by 1900. Unfortunately, Kentucky started its efforts to evaluate and preserve covered bridges much later than neighboring Ohio (150 extant) and Indiana (94 extant), so today only 12 survive; many of which have been recently rehabilitated.¹⁷

Kentucky’s extant covered bridges were built with a variety of truss types: kingpost, queenpost, combination king- and queenpost, Burr-arch, Town lattice, Smith-variant, and a Wheeler truss.

HABS/HAER/HALS Documentation of Kentucky’s Covered Bridges

Two of Kentucky’s covered bridges were documented by HABS in the 1930s, as part of a state survey of historic buildings. The “Wood-Covered Bridge” over the Licking River at Butler, Pendleton County (HABS KY-20-11), was a three-span Burr-arch truss built in 1870 and recorded prior to its demolition. The roof and siding had already been removed when Theodore Webb photographed the 460’-long bridge in February 1934, a rare opportunity to reveal the timber truss. Webb and company recorded another Burr-arch over the South Branch of the Licking River at Cynthiana, Harrison County the same year (HABS KY-20-20).

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) began administering the National Historic Covered Bridge Preservation (NHCBP) Program in 1998, a program that would go on to provide funds to rehabilitate nearly 250 bridges. With support from the NHCBP for research and education, HAER started a multi-year initiative: the HAER National Covered Bridge Recording Project. Led by project manager Christopher H. Marston, HAER would record nearly 100 covered bridges, designate seven as National Historic Landmarks, hold two national conferences, and publish two books. In addition to Covered Bridges and the Birth of American Engineering in 2015, Marston and Thomas Vitanza co-edited the Guidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Covered Bridges in 2019.¹⁸

HAER studied two Kentucky bridges as part of the NHCBP. In 2003, Lola Bennett recorded the ca. 1874 Bennett’s Mill Bridge over Tygart’s Creek in Greenup County, which represented the last surviving example of the regional Wheeler truss in the country. The bridge was reconstructed in 2003. For the Guidelines, Marston and Vitanza included a case study on the rehabilitation of the Johnson Creek Covered Bridge, which was completed by Arnold Graton in 2009. In addition, the NHCBP provided funding to rehabilitate at least five Kentucky bridges.

In 2018, I told Christopher Marston I was interested in documenting some Kentucky covered bridges to HAER photographic standards. He selected the bridges after consulting with Bill Caswell, President of the National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, which recently had a tour of Kentucky.¹⁹ We agreed on the following four bridges:

Beech Fork Bridge (HAER KY-54) ca. 1865 — 2 spans totaling 211 feet, longest extant covered bridge in state. Burr-arch truss; rehabilitated 2016-17.
Johnson Creek Bridge (HAER KY-55) 1874 — 110 feet, variant of Smith truss; arch added early 1900s; rehabilitated 2007-09.
Cabin Creek Bridge (HAER KY-56) ca. 1867-1875 — 114 feet, multiple kingpost truss with arches; rehabilitated 2013.
Goddard Bridge (HAER KY-57) Unknown date, possibly 1864 — 63 feet, Town lattice truss; moved 1932; rehabilitated 2004-06.

The first step for photographing bridges is finding them, which seemed like a simple task. While several maps are available online, actually getting to them presented some difficulties. First, their remoteness in valleys or hollows may partly explain why they survived. Second, Kentucky has a warren of back roads that are not always marked by signs or do not even appear on maps. Being a geographer, I still believe in paper maps, and I secured a large atlas of Kentucky plus a statewide road map. Although the atlas was my primary source, it was the GPS on my iPhone that actually and amazingly wove me to the bridges on some roads that weren’t even on the maps. The trick was to find origins and destinations in the atlas that the iPhone recognized close to the bridges. In some cases, the iPhone got me close and the atlas finally got me there. Successfully finding them was a collaboration between paper maps and digital GPS.

The photography requirements of HABS/HAER/HALS have two elements. The most well-known one is that HABS/HAER/HALS requires the use a large-format camera (4x5, 5x7, or 8x10) for most documentation, and the second is a protocol for shooting a structure that provides comprehensive systematic coverage. Documentary photography creates a visual data collection for analysis by architectural and engineering historians and historic preservationists. Its purpose is to collect as much information in as few photographs as possible, and the rationale for the large format camera is that details can be enlarged from the large negative. But HABS and HAER photography have different priorities related to the different missions of the programs. HABS concentrates on documenting structure, while HAER concentrates more on documenting the process that takes place in a structure, if applicable.

Getting the most information in the fewest photographs also relates to the time required to photograph with a large format camera. Ten to fifteen exterior photographs a day is typical, while fewer can be done on interiors especially if lighting is required. Other than single photographs of the front and one side of the structure for a survey, HABS suggests that the minimum coverage of a building consists of four exterior photographs: perspectives of the front and one side; the rear and the other side; an elevation of the front—straight-on view; and an environmental view of the structure as part of the larger landscape. Additional photos would consist of major architectural elements and then details. My preferred sequence would be to move around the building counterclockwise. For interiors, the sequence would be from major to minor rooms by floor.

For determining the sequence of photographs for covered bridges, I followed the master list of features of covered bridges found in Appendix C of Guidelines for Rehabilitating Covered Bridges. There are four categories: superstructure features including the truss and its connections, floor structure, and lateral bracing; substructure features supporting the bridge, including abutments, piers, and wing walls; the exterior envelope, including siding, portal, roof, and wall openings; and finally, the environmental context of approach, site, and setting features. Below, I have established a list of ten basic views for all covered bridges.

EXTERIOR ENVELOPE

Environmental shot, or what I call a “crossing” shot, which shows the entire bridge—perspective of portal and one side
Perspective of opposite portal and the other side of the bridge
Elevation of one portal
Abutments—on either end of covered bridges; they are often different because of different shore conditions and repairs

SUPERSTRUCTURE FEATURES

“Barrel shot” of trusses—a wide angle view down the middle showing trusses on both sides
Perspective of entire truss on one side
Elevation of a typical truss panel
Floor/deck surface
Supporting floor structure from underneath
Details of truss joinery, connections such as tie bars, bracing, etc.

The four minimum essential views in order of importance are:

“Barrel shot” of trusses—a wide angle view down the middle showing trusses on both side
Perspective of entire truss on one side
Elevation of typical truss panel
Perspective of portal and one side

Before going into the field, I use secondary photographic sources to develop a “shoot list” based on my protocol, and type it up. Upon arrival at the site, I inspect the bridge and modify the shoot list based on the specifics of the bridge. I also shoot the list with a digital camera to test the perspectives to have photos to help ID the large format negatives later, as when shooting more than one bridge on a trip it is hard to tell the difference later between trusses. While shooting I use the shoot list to make notes on lens used and exposure. Having learned from experience, I now shoot the four minimum views first to be sure I have them and then complete the others.

This project has been more time-consuming to complete them than I thought it would be. I’ve been at it about a year. Getting to my last bridge—Goddard—is a good example of a fieldwork adventure. I had completed three bridges by early June and only had Goddard Bridge left before it started raining . . . and raining. I had my cameras packed and by the door, ready to head out on the first sunny day. That came on a sunny Sunday so off I went to find the Goddard Bridge—about a two-hour drive from Louisville. But with the sun came the heat in excess of 90 degrees. When I got there, I discovered that it was still an operating bridge, with its single lane busy with morning traffic. The three other bridges were preserved landmarks closed to traffic. Never assume anything! I couldn’t shoot the trusses from inside without stopping traffic. I took some basic exteriors but after about an hour in the 90-degree heat, and carrying the big 4x5 camera and tripod around, I was beginning to fade. I decided to call it a day and check out a couple of other bridges in the area. Fleming County has the most covered bridges in the state and is home to the Fleming County Covered Bridge Museum. I would have to come back to get the interiors.

I returned the following Sunday morning with the temperature “only” in the 80s—just in time to find parishioners crossing the bridge for church! (There is a little white church on the other side of the bridge.) Actually, everything worked out. While they went to church, I took my photos; they left after church while I took a break. After I finished the interiors I headed home, having finally completed the field work on this project.

After I’m done processing these large format photographs and submit them to HAER for transmittal to the Library of Congress, I plan to go on to document the other covered bridges in the state of Kentucky.

--David L. Ames is Professor Emeritus of Urban Affairs and Public Policy, University of Delaware

1. Justine Christianson and Christopher H. Marston, executive editors, Covered Bridges and the Birth of American Engineering (Washington, DC: Historic American Engineering Record, National Park Service, 2015).

2. Lola Bennett, “History of Covered Bridges in the United States, in Covered Bridges and the Birth of American Engineering, ed. Christianson and Marston (Washington, DC: Historic American Engineering Record, National Park Service, 2015), 68.

3. Robert A. Powell, Kentucky’s Covered Bridges & Water Kills (Danville, KY: Silverhawke Press, Rev 2017), 61.

4. Bennett in Christianson and Marston, 51-53.

5. Powell, 65.

6. Bennett, in Christianson and Marston, 57.

7. Bennett, in Christianson and Marston, 57.

8. Terry Miller and Ronald G. Knapp, America’s Covered Bridges: Practical Crossings – Nostalgic Icons, (Rutland, VT, Tuttle Publishing, 2013), 68-69.

9. Bennett, in Christianson and Marston, 59.

10. Bennett, in Christianson and Marston,59.

11. Powell, 66.

12. Eric DeLony, “The Golden Age of the Iron Bridge,” Invention & Technology 10, no. 2 (Fall 1994), 11.

13. Bennett, in Christianson and Marston, 61.

14. Joseph D. Conwill, Covered Bridges Across North America (St. Paul: MBI Publishing Company, 2004), 27.

15. Miller and Knapp, 76-77.

16. Much of my material on Kentucky’s wooden covered bridges is from Robert A. Powell, Kentucky’s Covered Bridges & Water Mills, (Danville: Silver Hawke Publications, 1985, rev. 2017) and Robert W. M. Laughlin and Melissa C. Jurgensen, Images of America: Kentucky’s Covered Bridges (Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2007). Another good source is Miriam F. Wood and David A. Simmons, Covered Bridges: Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia (Wooster, Ohio: Wooster Book Co., 2007).

17. “Kentucky’s Covered Bridges,” Society for Industrial Archeology Newsletter 8, nos. 1 & 2, January & March 1979, 10. David Wright, ed. World Guide to Covered Bridges. 7th ed. National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, 2009.

18. Christopher H. Marston and Thomas A. Vitanza, Guidelines for Rehabilitating Covered Bridges (Washington, DC: Historic American Engineering Record, 2019).

19. Bill Caswell also started the useful web site that attempts to inventory every known covered bridge in North America: Covered Spans of Yesteryear, http://www.lostbridges.org/

New England Chapter Visits Harrisville, NH

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 12:00:00 GMT

Notes by Peter Michaud

The New England Chapter has perfect June weather for their field trip to Harrisville, NH. The group tour included Historic Harrisville, a National Historic Landmarked textile mill village, and Aldworth Manor, a National Register listed stuccoed “villa” created from a Greek Revival Mansion trucked up from Worcester, MA. Lunch at Aldworth Manor included commanding views of Mt Monadnock.

NPS Releases Guidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Covered Bridges

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 11:00:00 GMT

The National Park Service is pleased to announce the publication of the Guidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Covered Bridges, edited by Christopher H. Marston, Architect, Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Thomas A. Vitanza, Senior Historical Architect, Historic Preservation Training Center (HPTC). The book is one of the final products of the Federal Highway Administration’s National Historic Covered Bridges Preservation Program.

The Guidelines were prepared to illustrate best practices and provide technical examples that can be used in planning and executing projects for preserving and maintaining historic covered bridges, adapted from the principles of The Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.

Focusing on rehabilitation, the Guidelines are organized by function. Following general principles, chapters examine superstructure, substructure, exterior envelope, site features, and safety/protection systems. Each section discusses recommended and non-recommended treatments, with illustrated examples of retaining, protecting, maintaining, repairing, and replacing various elements of an historic covered bridge.

The book concludes with several case studies (written by the engineers, bridgewrights, and public officials who worked on them), comprised of various covered bridge truss types, locations, rehabilitation issues, and budgets. The Guidelines will be a useful resource for educating engineers, Department of Transportation officials, State Historic Preservation Officers, bridge owners, preservationists, students, and residents in maintaining these historic symbols of American engineering for future generations.

HAER is distributing the Guidelines to members of the historic bridge and preservation community nationwide. Additional copies may be requested by sending your mailing address to: christopher_marston@nps.gov. An electronic 508-compliant PDF is also available for download at: https://www.nps.gov/hdp/project/coveredbridges/publications.htm

Architectural History at UVA: Richard Guy Wilson and Our Community of Scholars A Symposium and Celebration: November 15-16, 2019

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 10:00:00 GMT

Please join our alumni, students, and friends as we gather for a symposium

Please join our alumni, students, and friends as we gather for a symposium featuring paper presentations in honor of Richard Guy Wilson’s scholarship, teaching, and mentorship, and as we celebrate the Department of Architectural History’s present and future.

Fri. 11.15.19
Paper Sessions presented by Architectural History alumni and students, followed by remarks by Richard Guy Wilson, Commonwealth Professor of Architectural History. Join friends and classmates for architectural history conviviality on Friday evening.

Sat. 11.16.19
Paper Sessions presented by Architectural History alumni and students, followed by a celebratory reception honoring Richard Guy Wilson at the newly restored Rotunda.

More information about the event and registration will be coming soon - For up to date information, visit www.arch.virginia.edu/events/rgw-symposium-fall-2019

We look forward to seeing you all in Charlottesville in November!

Sally Kress Thompkins Fellowship accepting applications Sept 1

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 09:00:00 GMT

Attention Student Architectural Historians!

Spend your summer conducting research on a nationally significant U.S. building or site and preparing a history to become part of the permanent HABS collection. The HABS/SAH Sally Kress Tompkins Fellowship, a joint program of the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) and the Society of Architectural Historians (SAH), permits a graduate student in architectural history or a related field to work on a 12-week HABS history project during summer 2020. The Fellow’s research interests and goals will inform the building or site selected for documentation by HABS staff. HABS is a program of the National Park Service and the Fellow is usually stationed at our Washington, DC office.

The award consists of a $12,000 stipend, and SAH conference registration and travel expenses up to $1,000.

Applications accepted Sept. 1 – Dec. 31, 2019.

For more information visit:https://www.nps.gov/hdp/jobs/tompkins.htm

2019 Orlando Ridout V Fieldwork Fellowship deadline December 1

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 09:00:00 GMT

To honor founding member Orlando Ridout V, who died in 2013, the Vernacular Architecture Forum has established a fieldwork fellowship in his name. Orlando, a mentor to so many of us, asked that donations in his memory be made to the VAF to support students’ and VAF members’ fieldwork training and activities. To fulfill his request, the Orlando Ridout V Fieldwork Fellowship was created, combining contributions to the Ridout memorial fund with the former Fund for Fieldwork, established by a generous gift from long-time VAF member Thomas Carter in 2012.

The Orlando Ridout V Fieldwork Fellowship will support and encourage students and VAF members in their field-based research and documentation projects, and in their efforts to learn and conduct fieldwork through apprenticeships, field schools, and continuing education and training projects.

The guidelines for the Orlando Ridout V Fieldwork Fellowship allow all VAF members, as well as students participating in field school programs, to apply to the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee for monies to support their field-based projects and training opportunities.

Support is available in five categories:

Field school directors (VAF members) may apply for grants of up to $1000 to support their programs and/or provide financial aid to participants;
Students participating in field schools or other training opportunities may apply for stipends of up to $500 to attend such programs (prior VAF membership not required);
VAF members may apply for grants of up to $500 to support continuing education and professional training activities.
VAF members may apply for grants of up to $1000 for support of fieldwork activities related to the pursuit of academic degrees;
VAF members may apply for grants of up to $1000 to support fieldwork activities not related to fulfillment of academic degree requirements;

Projects that explore and document cultural diversity are especially welcome.

Grants to Field School Directors

Grants of up to $1000 are available to field schools organized and directed by VAF members. These awards may be applied to program costs and/or stipends to participants at the discretion of the field school director.

Application Process

Completed applications by field school directors should be submitted electronically to the Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee between January1 and September 1, 2019, to support programs that will be run during 2019 or over the winter intersession period of 2019-2020; a decision will be rendered in a timely manner after receipt of the request. The application should define the scope, methodology, objectives, and expected outcomes of the field school. A final report will be submitted to the Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee within three months of the completion of the field school describing the outcomes and impacts of the field school; if the funds were used to provide scholarships to individual participants, a list of the students who received the scholarships and amounts awarded should be included. In addition, individual field school participants who received scholarship awards from the Field School Director should submit a brief report (up to three written pages, images, video, etc.) directly to the Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee within three months of the completion of the field school discussing how the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship enabled them to obtain an understanding of fieldwork and how it will contribute to their future work/career.

Grants to students participating in field schools or other training opportunities

Grants of up to $500 are available to students currently enrolled in undergraduate or graduate programs who will be participating in field schools or other training opportunities. Prior membership in the VAF is not required. A one-year student membership to the VAF will be provided to grantees if they are not already members.

Application Process

Applications should be submitted electronically to the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee by the student applying to or accepted to a field school during 2019 or during the winter intersession of the 2019-2020 academic year. Applications should be received by the Committee at least one month prior to the start of the field school. The cut-off date for receiving applications is December 1, 2019. The application must include a description of the field school/training program to which the applicant has applied (name and location of the program, director, dates); a description of what expenses the grant will cover; the applicant’s CV; a letter of recommendation from a faculty member, field school director, or employer; copy of the letter/email of admission to the field school; and a brief essay on what the applicant hopes to learn, why the particular training is important, and how it might influence the applicant’s later academic and professional career. If the applicant applies to the VAF for support to attend a field school prior to receiving notification of admission, such notification must be submitted before the grant can be awarded.

Grants to VAF members to support continuing education and professional training activities.

VAF members may apply for grants of up to $500 to support continuing education and professional training related to fieldwork.

Application Process

Applications should be submitted electronically to the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee by the applicant at least one month prior to the start of the program. Applications will be accepted between January 1 and December 1, 2019. The application must include a description of the program to which the applicant has applied (name and location of the program, director, dates); a description of what expenses the grant will cover; the applicant’s CV; copy of the letter/email of admission to the program; and a brief essay on what the applicant hopes to learn, why the particular training is important, and how it might influence and/or further the applicant’s career. If the applicant applies to the VAF for support to attend an educational/training program prior to receiving notification of admission, such notification must be submitted before the grant can be awarded.

The grantee will provide a brief, but substantive, report (up to three written pages, photo essay, video, or other presentation) to the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee within three months of the completion of the educational/training program describing how it has benefitted the grantee, increased his/her understanding of the importance of fieldwork as a research activity or ability to conduct such work, and the future benefits that the acquired knowledge/experience will bring to their work. If possible, be specific about how the new knowledge will be applied.

Grants to VAF members for support of fieldwork activities related to the pursuit of academic degrees

VAF members may apply for grants of up to $1000 for support of fieldwork activities that are related to the achievement of an academic degree.

Application Process

Applications should be submitted electronically to the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee by the applicant between January 1 and December 1, 2019, and at least one month prior to the start of the project. The application must include a description of the fieldwork project to be undertaken (nature of the resource(s) to be studied, methodology, expected outcomes and impact, project timeline); a description of expenses the grant will cover; the applicant’s CV; and a letter of support from a faculty member or academic advisor.

The grantee will provide a brief, but substantive, report (up to three written pages, photo essay, video, or other presentation) to the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee within three months of the completion of the project. The report should describe the contributions made by the project with regard to fieldwork methods, deeper investigation of specific resources, and professional development of the participants.

Grants to VAF members for support of fieldwork not related to pursuit of an academic degree

VAF members may apply for grants of up to $1000 for support of non-academic research projects involving fieldwork related to a publication, exhibition, etc., or for preservation-related fieldwork such as documentation of threatened resources.

Application Process

Applications should be submitted electronically to the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee by the applicant between January 1 and December 1, 2019, at least one month prior to the start of the fieldwork project. The application must include a brief essay describing the resource(s) to be studied, the reasons for undertaking the fieldwork, methodology to be employed, expected outcomes and impacts; the applicant’s CV; if partnering with an organization, please describe the organization and include a letter from the organization describing their involvement and any contributions they might make (financial or otherwise); at least one letter of support for the project.

The grantee will provide a brief, but substantive, report (up to three written pages, photo essay, video, or other presentation) to the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee within three months of the completion of the project describing the outcomes and impacts of the project on the resource, community, and/or their own understanding of and ability to conduct fieldwork. The report should describe the contributions made by the project with regard to fieldwork methods, deeper investigation of specific resources, and professional development of the participants.

Reports submitted by grantees to the VAF Ridout Fieldwork Fellowship Committee maybe submitted at the discretion of the Committee Members for posting on the VAF web page, blog, or newsletter (VAN).

Andrew Dolkart Quoted in New York Times Article on Landmarks

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 08:50:00 GMT

Member Andrew Dolkart, in his role as co-director of the LGBTQ Historic Sites Project, was quoted in a New York Times article "A Gay Theater and James Baldwin’s N.Y. Apartment May Get Landmark Protection" in May 2019.

Kingston Heath Retires

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 08:40:00 GMT

Kingston Heath has retired from U of Oregon and relocating to Bozeman, Montana (summer & fall) and Mendenhall, MS (winter & spring). In retirement he is staying engaged with VAF by assisting with organizing the VAF 2021 field trip component to New Bedford, MA.

He is also continuing to publish. His article “Toward a Humanist Approach to Historic Preservation” will appear in the summer issue of Journal of American Folklore (JAF). Also, Chapter 5 of his Patina of Place book will be reprinted by Tagus Press at the end of the year. The working title is "Immigration and Millwork: Portuguese Communities in Industrial New England."

Michael Holleran Named Fitch Foundation Mid-Career Fellow

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 08:30:00 GMT

Michael Holleran has been named a Fitch Foundation Mid-Career Fellow, for his project The Urban Ditch: Landscape, Life and Afterlives, on the cultural landscapes of irrigation ditches in cities of the American West. The project has also been awarded Brigham Young University’s John Topham and Susan Redd Butler Off-Campus Faculty Research Award.

Abigail Van Slyck Awarded Fulbright US Scholar

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 08:20:00 GMT

Abigail Van Slyck, Dayton Professor of Art History at Connecticut College, has been awarded a Fulbright U.S. Scholar award at the University of York, in York, England. The Fulbright award will support Van Slyck’s research on the history of childhood and the role of architecture in reproducing elite identity. She will be in residence at the University of York in fall 2019 and will conduct research in the U.K. In particular, she will lead a detailed study of the Swiss Cottage, built for the children of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

Bob Young Retires from University of Utah

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 08:00:00 GMT

Robert A. Young, PhD, FAPT, PE, Professor of Architecture and Historic Preservation Program Director at the University of Utah College of Architecture + Planning, has retired after 26 years of teaching, research, and community service focused on stewardship of the built environment (e.g., environmental controls, historic preservation, and sustainability). Professor Young has been elevated to the rank of Professor Emeritus effective July 1, 2019. His retirement plans include travel, writing, photography, and preservation consulting.

I have enjoyed the camaraderie and support from VAF members over the years and wish everyone continued success in their academic endeavors.

Suzanne Francis-Brown publishes article

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 07:50:00 GMT

Suzanne Francis-Brown (UWI Museum) worked with Jamaican architect Peter Francis on Norman & Dawbarn, the UCWI, and Tropical Modernist Architecture in Jamaica, published in Caribbean Quarterly, Volume 65 Issue 1.

In the late 1940s and early 1950s, the regional University College of the West Indies was one of the early greenfield universities developed in the waning British empire, which drew on the work of several British architects working in the tropics post-World War II. British modernist architect Graham Dawbarn brought a spare sensibility, climatic considerations and modern systems to the Jamaican landscape where the university’s founding campus was located.

Seth Hinshaw Publishes Book on Residential Doors

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 07:20:00 GMT

A Field Guide to American Residential Doors by Seth Hinshaw is a historic account of the changing design of doors from 1650 to 2000. It highlights the 300 most commonly encountered doors in the United States. The book is arranged around five classes of doors: batten doors, paneled doors, sash doors, veneered doors, and ancillary doors. The book covers the history of each of these classes of doors and discusses variations of doors within each class. It also includes a brief overview of the millwork industry with thumbnail sketches of some important door companies.

Summer Bibliography

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 05:05:00 GMT

compiled by Travis Olson

Anderson, Colin L. "Segregation, Popular Culture, and the Southern Pastoral: The Spatial and Racial Politics of American Sheet Music, 1870–1900." Journal of Southern History, vol. 85 no. 3, 2019, pp. 577-610. Project MUSE, doi:10.1353/soh.2019.0163

Bădescu, Gruia. “Traces of Empire: Architectural Heritage, Imperial Memory and Post-War Reconstruction in Sarajevo and Beirut.” History and Anthropology, vol. 30, no. 4, Aug. 2019, pp. 366–81.

Byrd, Jodi A. "To Hear the Call and Respond: Grounded Relationalities and the Spaces of Emergence." American Quarterly, vol. 71 no. 2, 2019, pp. 337-342.

Cohen, Joanna. Luxurious Citizens: The Politics of Consumption in Nineteenth-Century America. PENN, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2017.

Datta, Ankur. “‘That Was Natural . This Is Just Artificial ’!: Displacement, Memory, Worship, and Connection at a Kashmiri Hindu Shrine Replica.” History and Anthropology, vol. 30, no. 3, May 2019, pp. 276–92.

de Antuñano, Emilio. “Mexico City as an Urban Laboratory: Oscar Lewis, the ‘Culture of Poverty’ and the Transnational History of the Slum.” Journal of Urban History, vol. 45, no. 4, July 2019, pp. 813–30.

Feeley, Lynne. “The Elevationists: Gerrit Smith, Black Agrarianism, and Land Reform in 1840s New York,” Environmental History, Volume 24, Issue 2, April 2019, Pages 307–326, https://doi.org/10.1093/envhis/emy126

Finlay, Robin. “A Diasporic Right to the City: The Production of a Moroccan Diaspora Space in Granada, Spain.” Social & Cultural Geography, vol. 20, no. 6, July 2019, pp. 785–805.

Franklin, Alex, and Nora Schuurman. “Aging Animal Bodies: Horse Retirement Yards as Relational Spaces of Liminality, Dwelling and Negotiation.” Social & Cultural Geography, vol. 20, no. 7, Sept. 2019, pp. 918–37.

Gutterman, Nan R., and J. Scott Howell. “Completing a Nineteenth-Century Vision: Creating Monumental Portal Gates at Philadelphia City Hall.” APT Bulletin: The Journal of Preservation Technology, vol. 49, no. 4, 2018, pp. 16–22.

Hubbard, Phil. “Enthusiasm, Craft and Authenticity on the High Street: Micropubs as ‘Community Fixers.’” Social & Cultural Geography, vol. 20, no. 6, July 2019, pp. 763–84.

Jones, Christopher W. "Culture in Crisis: Preserving Cultural Heritage in Conflict Zones." Future Anterior, vol. 15 no. 1, 2018, pp. 68-77.

O’Brien, Kean & Vilchis, Leonardo & Maritescu, Corina. "Boyle Heights and the Fight against Gentrification as State Violence." American Quarterly, vol. 71 no. 2, 2019, pp. 389-396.

Rainer, Leslie, and Susan Macdonald. “Protecting and Preserving América Tropical in Downtown Los Angeles.” APT Bulletin: The Journal of Preservation Technology, vol. 49, no. 4, 2018, pp. 33–42.

Shackel, Paul A. “Structural Violence and the Industrial Landscape.” International Journal of Heritage Studies, vol. 25, no. 7, July 2019, pp. 750–62.

Strunk, Christopher, and Margaret Richardson. “Cultivating Belonging: Refugees, Urban Gardens, and Placemaking in the Midwest, U.S.A.” Social & Cultural Geography, vol. 20, no. 6, July 2019, pp. 826–48.

Wills, John. “Exploding the 1950s Consumer Dream: Mannequins and Mushroom Clouds at Doom Town, Nevada Test Site.” Pacific Historical Review, vol. 88, no. 3, Aug. 2019, pp. 410–38.

Buildings & Landscapes Editors Encourage Rolling Submissions

Christine R Henry — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 05:00:00 GMT

Buildings & Landscapes is the leading source for peer-reviewed, scholarly work on the vernacular architecture of North America and beyond. The journal continues VAF's tradition of scholarly publication going back to the first Perspectives in Vernacular Architecture in 1982. Published through the University of Minnesota Press since 2007, the journal publishes two issues per year.

The editors encourage rolling submissions of scholarly articles that integrate fieldwork and archival/primary source research into original arguments about the history of everyday buildings and/or landscapes. The editors particularly welcome submission of articles on topics related to the study of North American vernacular architecture or which otherwise broaden the context of NorthAmerican architecture and cultural landscapes. Authors are urged to draw linkages between the physical aspects of the built environment they study and the people who create, consume, use, and inhabit it. If an author is unsure about a manuscript’s fit for the journal, they are encouraged to contact the editors in advance of a formal submission: Carl Lounsbury(carllounsbury@gmail.com) and Lydia MatticeBrandt (lbrandt.usc@gmail.com). To find out more about submitting to B&L, please visit the VAF website.