[MassHistPres] what's in a name?

[Winwilb at aol.com]

Is Concord unique in having space and a curator in our public library's  
Special Collections where historic papers and also some small ephemera can be  
safely preserved-- and be available to the public for research , copying as 
 needed, etc?  This area is open most days, including Saturdays , and is  
climate-controlled, I think! Awesome! It is much used by those doing house,  
family or other historic research, both locals and those from afar.
Win wilbur
 
 
In a message dated 2/19/2014 10:44:35 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
djd184 at verizon.net writes:

Jill  


You raise valid points but I think lots of Historical Societies may be  
like Brookline's.  It has an small historic house museum and an historic  one 
room school -- both town owned -- and it does a good job with periodic  
programs and its web site -- but it has no proper archive — much less any  other 
museum space.  And it is not empowered to speak for the town.  


Dennis




On Feb 19, 2014, at 9:32 AM, Jill Fisher <_jillfisher47 at hotmail.com_ 
(mailto:jillfisher47 at hotmail.com) >  wrote:



Dennis, I appreciate your comments on the various &  overlapping roles.  I 
would only add that many if not most towns  &/or counties have Historical 
Societies whose role it is to document the  historical ephemera such as 
newspapers, letters, clothing, etc.  Where  this is the case, I'm not sure that 
adding an Architectural Preservation  Commission along side a Historical 
[Preservation] Commission would be  necessary.  Perhaps it would set up 
competition for qualified  volunteers & possibly create turf battles.

Just a  thought.


Jill Fisher, AICP
Larson Fisher Associates
PO Box  1394
Woodstock, NY  12498
845-679-5054
_jillfisher47 at hotmail.com_ (mailto:jillfisher47 at hotmail.com) 

_www.larsonfisher.com_ (http://www.larsonfisher.com/) 


 
____________________________________
 From: _djd184 at verizon.net_ (mailto:djd184 at verizon.net) 
Date: Tue, 18 Feb  2014 09:50:49 -0500
To: _masshistpres at cs.umb.edu_ (mailto:masshistpres at cs.umb.edu) 
Subject:  Re: [MassHistPres] what's in a name?

Marcia  


Let me share a thought re the term "Historic Preservation  Commission"


As you know, Historic Commissions and Historic District Commissions are  
established under different MGL chapters.  40c allows an LHD commission  to 
merge with and subsume the role of the Historical Commission.


When Brookline became a CLG in the '80s it merged its commissions, in  part 
because we were under the impression we had to do so to become a CLG.  That 
is now not the case, if it ever was.   We also adopted the  name 
Preservation Commission — in part because we were sick of hearing  "Hysterical 
Commission" yuk yuk!


The effect has been that Brookline has a commission that is fairly good  at 
LHDs, Demo Delays, etc.  Indeed it risks being swamped by its own  success.


The downside is that the role of the traditional historical commission  has 
largely been lost — and has been difficult to argue for at budget  time.


Altho archival materials and memories need to be "preserved," perhaps  the 
term preservation in the commission's name implicitly suggests in our  
culture that the focus is mostly on buildings and less on their cultural,  
artifactual, and historical context than once would have been the  case.


Altho the Preservation Commission's hard working staff could  justifiably 
shoot me for suggesting this, arguably Brookline would be better  served by 
having both an Architectural Preservation Commission and an  Historical 
Commission.


Dennis De Witt




On Feb 17, 2014, at 12:31 PM, Marcia Starkey <_mdstarkey at crocker.com_ 
(mailto:mdstarkey at crocker.com) >  wrote:



 
The Fall  1992 “Preservation Advocate” from MHC included a message from 
the Chairman  which said : Massachusetts is unique in that it provides for a 
municipal body – local  historical commissions– to carry out preservation  
planning at the local level.”   Two thoughts: is Massachusetts  still unique 
as bodies authorized by state law? and is the title  “historical commission”
 (rather than “historic preservation commission” )  still preferable?  
 
Marcia  Starkey
Greenfield  Historical Commission  

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