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PreserveCast is where the past and present meet to discuss how history impacts today – and tomorrow. Hosted by Nicholas Redding of Preservation Maryland.
Episodes
Tuesday Jan 02, 2018
Tuesday Jan 02, 2018
Ever walk into a historic building or place and find yourself imagining new ways to use it? Like an art project or public event? Well, it’s one thing to have the idea, but a historic changemaker, like today’s guest Dana Saylor, is someone who actually follows through. Dana is a prominent voice in placemaking, public art, and preservation, and she spoke with Nick from her home in Buffalo, New York about creative ways that people can use historic places.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2018/01/02/dana-saylor-and-the-art-of-historic-placemaking/
Wednesday Dec 27, 2017
Wednesday Dec 27, 2017
A few weeks ago we took PreserveCast on the road, albeit only a few blocks, to visit a truly unique historic place, the American Visionary Art Museum. Nick sat down with AVAM's founder, Rebecca Hoffberger, in one of the museums several repurposed, historic buildings to discuss the history of the institution that houses the world's largest collection of 'outsider' or 'visionary' art. Nick and Rebecca covered a lot of topics, including the decision-making process that led Rebecca to locate in a campus of historic buildings in Baltimore city. Things may seem a little unorthodox, but that's what visionary art is all about on this episode of PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/12/27/rebecca-hoffberger-the-american-visionary-art-museum/
Monday Dec 18, 2017
Monday Dec 18, 2017
When is a building worth saving? This can be a controversial question, even among preservationists. Greg Galer, the Executive Director of the Boston Preservation Alliance, joined us on PreserveCast to share his perspective. Greg has worked to preserve many examples of mid-century modern ‘brutalist’ architecture, like Boston City Hall and the Boston Christian Science Center. Should exposed concrete structures be preserved the same as 19th century estates? A brutal question (and hard to answer too), but let’s talk about it on this week’s PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/12/18/in-defense-of-brutalism-greg-galer-of-the-boston-preservation-alliance/
Monday Dec 11, 2017
Monday Dec 11, 2017
It may not come as a surprise that some historians and museum professionals are not always quick to adapt to change, but that’s only some of us. There are others out there, like today’s guest Frank Vagnone, who not only are capable of adapting, but thrive on inverting the status quo of museums and public history. Frank and I spoke about the book he co-authored, The Anarchist’s Guide to Historic House Museums, his position as the President and CEO of Old Salem, and examples of good ways for house museums to defy expectations. There's anarchy in the USA, the U.K., and beyond on this week's PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/12/11/frank-vagnone-the-anarchists-podcast-on-historic-house-museums/
Editor's note: The music in the segment came from a 1994 recording of a Virginia Pow Wow, and included a traditional Eastern Woodlands and Iroqouis song/dance called Gadasjot.
Monday Dec 04, 2017
Monday Dec 04, 2017
How are battlefields preserved? Why are battlefields preserved? What should we do with a battlefield site once it is protected? These are all important questions, and we are fortunate to be joined by someone who can possibly provide the answers. Jim Lighthizer is the President of the Civil War Trust and an expert in battlefield preservation. Join Nick as Jim shares insight into how he maintains momentum at the head of the nations leading Civil War Battlefield Preservation Organization on this week's PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/12/04/jim-lighthizer-and-the-civil-war-trust/
This episode is part of focus series on the history of the Antietam Battlefield.
Monday Nov 27, 2017
Monday Nov 27, 2017
Often with history and historic preservation it can be all too easy for the places associated with a particular piece of our history to fall through the cracks. To a degree, that has been the case the case with the history of Maryland's women's suffrage movement, but today we're joined by historian Kacy Rohn, a native Marylander and the author of a recent historic context report focused on the stories of these women and the places that were important to their stories. Join us for a discussion on the fight for women's right to vote in the United States, and the power of place to help us remember that fight. This is PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/11/27/kacy-rohn-the-history-of-womens-suffrage-in-maryland-and-beyond/
Monday Nov 20, 2017
Monday Nov 20, 2017
It doesn't matter if it's your molar, your canine, or what, everybody has some kind of sweet tooth. Something that you may not be thinking about is how that sweet tooth has played a role in history. Susan Benjamin is the founder of True Treats Candy in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, and author of the book Sweet as Sin: The Unwrapped Story of How Candy Became America’s Favorite Pleasure. Susan has appeared on platforms from NPR to NBC, and she joined us on PreserveCast to share the rich history of candy in American culture, from pre-Colombian Native Americans to the working poor of the Industrial Revolution. Go ahead and spoil your dinner with this week’s PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/11/20/susan-benjamin-true-treats-candy-and-the-age-old-sweet-tooth/
Editor's note: Many thanks to the Storm Boyz Lenne Lenape Drum, whose music was used in the today's segment of "Preservation Explanation."
Monday Nov 13, 2017
Monday Nov 13, 2017
Based in Newport, Rhode Island, the 1772 Foundation’s mission is to ensure the safe passage of historic buildings and farmland to future generations, in the Northeast and around the country. Under the direction of today’s guest, Mary Anthony, one of the key tools the Foundation uses to accomplish this mission is their nationwide historic property redevelopment, or revolving funds, program. Mary explained to us details of how her organization can help save buildings from Colorado to Florida to Maine, and also why it’s important to emphasize the human element of philanthropy, on this week’s PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/11/13/mary-anthony-and-the-1772-foundation/
Producer's note: We apologize for any issues you might have had while accessing this episode. We've recently made some software changes and the original file did not upload correctly. It's been updated and you should now be able to stream and download as usual. Thanks for your patience, and keep on preserving!
Monday Nov 06, 2017
Monday Nov 06, 2017
As historic preservationists, we often can fall into only thinking about history through the framework of buildings and sites, or even get caught up on buildings from just one era. That is not the case for our guest today, Dr. Bill Schindler. Bill is one of the world’s leading experimental archaeologists and an expert on primitive technologies and historic foodways. Join us as Bill explains how food has driven technological development throughout human history, how we are uniquely positioned in that history, and why we may want to look at ancient foodways to inform how we eat in the future. Hopefully we won’t make you too hungry, on this episode of PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/11/06/dr-bill-schindler-primitive-technology-and-the-food-of-the-future/
Monday Oct 30, 2017
Monday Oct 30, 2017
Understanding why preserving historic places makes good economic sense can sometimes seem complex and hard to explain. But fortunately our guest today is Donovan Rypkema, the principal of PlaceEconomics and the President of Heritage Strategies Internationa, and a man who has made a career out of explaining the interplay of economics, real estate, and preservation. Donovan is one of the world thought leaders on preservation economics, and he and Nick talked about the research that Donovan and others have done into the economic benefits of preservation, both short and long term, as well as the uncertain future of the Federal Historic Tax Credit program.
Monday Oct 23, 2017
Monday Oct 23, 2017
When does history end? For some, like today’s guest Clare Lise Kelly, it might be closer to the present than you think. Clare is an architectural historian here in Maryland whose focus is the preservation of mid-century modern architecture from the 1950s and 60s. She literally wrote the book Montgomery Modern, focused on the architecture of Montgomery County, northwest of Washington D.C. From the future of office parks to Frank Lloyd Wright, there’s a lot to cover before we have to say so long on this episode of PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/10/23/clare-lise-kelly-montgomery-modern-whats-the-future-for-mid-century-modern-architecture/
Producer's note: At around the 24:00 minute mark, Clare mentions an example of a building with a successfully, fully-restored facade. She said the Seagram Building, but was actually intending to reference the Lever House.
Monday Oct 16, 2017
Monday Oct 16, 2017
From buildings to furniture to fine art, there are few historic objects or items that Dr. Susan Buck would be unable to analyze through the microscopic examination of paint samples. Join us for a conversation about Susan’s work on projects from Monticello in Charlottesville, Virginia to the Forbidden City in Beijing, China, and on items from 19th century Shaker furniture to Egyptian coffins from the 5th century B.C. What can we learn from a paint chip the size of a pin head? Find out on this week’s PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/10/16/paint-chip-analysis-with-dr-susan-buck/
Monday Oct 09, 2017
Monday Oct 09, 2017
As preservationists, we here at PreserveCast are usually concerned with the physical history; what we can know from the cold hard facts. But seeing as how it’s October and Halloween is around the corner, we thought we’d talk a little about haunted history. Author Colin Dickey joined me to talk about the history of ghost stories and share what we can learn from the places that scare us. The conversation ranges all the way from Silicon Valley to Richmond Virginia on this, the first ever PreserveCast Spooktacular!
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/10/09/colin-dickey-ghostland-and-the-preservecast-spooktacular/
Monday Oct 02, 2017
Monday Oct 02, 2017
Few historic moments continue to reverberate through our nation quite like the Civil War and the abolition of slavery. But despite the way the history lives on, there are some parts that will always be challenging for us to face as a nation. Joe McGill, the founder of the Slave Dwelling Project, joined me to discuss the work he does to shed light on some of the most painful, yet powerful, places in America. Join us for a discussion on the value of remember all aspects of our past, from slave dwellings to Confederate monuments, on this week’s PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/10/02/joe-mcgill-and-the-slave-dwelling-project/
Producer's note: This episode is part of our focus series on the history of the Antietam Battlefield.
Monday Sep 25, 2017
Monday Sep 25, 2017
Building Information Modeling (BIM) allows architects to measure elements of a building down to the centimeter, and Tom Reinhart is here to explain how George Washington's Mount Vernon is expanding on that technology even further to get the most benefit for historic preservationsits. What do you get when you cross information from George Washington's own handwritten letters and the latest tech in data systems and digital modeling? Find out on this week's PreserveCast!
Monday Sep 18, 2017
Monday Sep 18, 2017
It's hard to talk about the history of the Civil War without touching on the Maryland Campaign, which came to an end with the Battle of Antietam. This battle was not only the single bloodiest day of the War, but also preicpated Abraham Lincoln's issuing of the Emancipation Proclamation. And as important as the battle was, it would be extremely challenging to pass the history of that day on to future generations without the preserved Antietam Battlefield in its proper context, which is the way it is today thanks to Dr. Tom Clemens and the other members of the Save Historic Antietam Foundation. Learn more on this week's PreserveCast.
Producer's note: This episode is part of our focus series on the history of the Antietam Battlefield.
Monday Sep 11, 2017
Monday Sep 11, 2017
Community Forklift is part of a vital, growing industry, that of reuse and architectural salvage. Ruthie Mundell, the current Director of Outreach and Education and one of Community Forklift's first employees is here to share with us her own origin story, as well as share about the amazing work that the group is doing today. Stick around to learn how green thinking and the preservation of historic building materials can save the environment, and save you money on your next home improvement project.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/09/11/ruthie-mundell-community-forklift-and-the-ethics-of-reuse/
Tuesday Sep 05, 2017
Tuesday Sep 05, 2017
Historic preservation is about maintaining a record of human history and those who have come before us, and that doesn't just mean buildings. Film, tape, and other analog media mediums are not going to last forever, and there are only a few people out there who understand the potential threat of losing countless hours of recorded information who have the technical skill, the energy, and the passion to do something about it. Fortunately for us, Siobahn Hagan is one of those people. She joined Nick to talk about the work she does with her non-profit, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Moving Images Archive (MARMIA), including digitizing the WJZ local news archive. So fire up the projector and turn down the lights on this episode of PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/09/05/siobhan-hagan-the-archives-of-marmia-audio-and-visual-media-preservation/
Monday Aug 28, 2017
Monday Aug 28, 2017
Moving a historic home is already a challenge, but moving a historic college dorm? Stick around while Nick talks to Terence McCann, Jr., the Director of Facilities Management Services at Goucher College, where they are in the process of moving three out of four of the original buildings that make up Froelicher Hall. This move is historic in more ways than one, as it is also one of the biggest and fastest building move ever attempted.
Monday Aug 21, 2017
Monday Aug 21, 2017
Historic Preservation is not always accomplished through the same methods, and it's certainly not the same everywhere you go. That's why Nick sat down with Lauren Oswalt McHale, President of the L'Enfant Trust in Washington, D.C., to compare notes on some of the trust's biggest programs. This includes their massive conservation easement program, as well as the trust's work using a revolving fund to redevelop historic properties in the Anacostia neighborhood in Southeast D.C., an area whose history has too often been ignored.
Monday Aug 14, 2017
Monday Aug 14, 2017
On July 12th of this year, preservationists from across the state of Maryland convened at the U.S. Naval Academy to take part in the Old Line State Summit, Preservation Maryland's annual conference. Participants learned about all of the most current topics in the field, ranging from virtual and augmented reality, to the preservation of LGBTQ history, and podcasting! Join Nick and guests Diane Caslow, of the Preservation Maryland Board, Susan Giddings of the Friends of the Rising Sun Inn, and Catherine Rogers Arthur from the Maryland State Archives, along with the "studio audience" for a special recording of PreserveCast, Live from the Old Line State Summit!
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/08/14/live-from-the-old-line-state-summit-conference/
Monday Aug 07, 2017
Monday Aug 07, 2017
Every once in a while we in the preservation community can do with a pick me up; a preservation story where in spite of the challenges, people's better nature prevails. And honestly that is the case with our guests this week, Matt Prince of Taco Bell, and Katie Rispoli Keaotamai of We Are The Next. With the support of Taco Bell, the local Conservancy of Downey, CA, and countless taco-loving citizens, Katie and Matt spearheaded the movement to save the building that was home to the very first Taco Bell. Stick around to hear how a few individuals and a corporate citizen who is willing to listen made national news. This is PreserveCast.
Monday Jul 31, 2017
Monday Jul 31, 2017
There's more to modern archaeology than the old shovel and trowell. With the use of Geographic Information Systems, archaeologists can create maps of land surface down to extraordinarily specific levels, and predict sites for teams to go in and dig. Nick sat down with Stacy Poulos from Maryland's own Anne Arundel County to discuss the many advances in technology in archaeology including GIS, laser scanning, and the potential future developments like holographic displays of lost buildings! This is PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/07/31/stacy-poulous-gis-and-technological-advances-in-archaeology/
Monday Jul 24, 2017
Monday Jul 24, 2017
Although not always the first thing to come to mind as a cultural resource in need of preservation, neon signs are a unique form of art that exist at the crossroads of 20th century popular history and the preservation of what can make a community unique. And they look cool doing it. Join us as Paul Greenstein, an expert in creating and restoring neon signage from Los Angeles, CA, shares some of his knowledge of how exactly neon works, what it takes to restore an old sign, and the state of the neon sign community today. So shine on, you crazy noble gases, this is PreserveCast!
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/07/24/paul-greenstein-neon-sign-preservation-and-restoration/
Monday Jul 17, 2017
Monday Jul 17, 2017
Historic Preservation is meant to keep the best parts of the past alive so that future generations can partake in these shared cultural resources. But what is the point of that if future generations aren't interested, or simply don't know how to approach the world of preservation? Thankfully, Katie Rispoli Keaotamai, the founder and executive director of We Are The Next, is here to share about the work her nonprofit is doing to help youth in traditionally underserved and overlooked communities learn how to be active citizens, and understand the value of preserving their neighborhoods and communities. Katie's joining us from Southern California, but her message applies around the world because this is PreserveCast.
Listen here: https://www.preservecast.org/2017/07/17/katie-rispoli-keaotamai-we-are-the-next-youth-engagement-in-the-21st-century/