The DNR Division of Historic Preservation & Archaeology will recognize outstanding efforts in the field by presenting the 2019 Indiana Historic Preservation Awards at the Preserving Historic Places conference on Thursday, April 11 at 3:15 p.m. CT at the Old Vanderburgh County Courthouse at 201 NW Fourth St., Evansville.
As the state historic preservation office, the division oversees the National Register of Historic Places in Indiana, the federally funded Historic Preservation Fund grant program, and the Reinvestment Historic Tax Credit program, and administers programs to protect and preserve the state’s prehistoric and historical archaeological sites. The agency also functions as the central repository for historic structure and archaeological site records.
The award recipients are:
Cultural Resource Analysts, Inc. The staff of the Indiana office of Cultural Resource Analysts, Inc. will be receiving the 2019 Indiana Archaeology Award for their recent work in Evansville. In the past few years, they have undertaken several large-scale archaeological projects in the Evansville area that were well-executed and contributed to a deeper understanding of the history of the city.
In 2017, Aaron Harth, Lisa Kelley, Tanya Faberson and Andrew Martin investigated Evansville Bee Slough Dump, which provided valuable information on land use, consumption, and lifeways of Evansville residents in the early 1900s. That same year, Kelley and Martin oversaw a project that investigated an area of the city known as Baptisttown, which was the center of the African- American community in post-bellum Evansville. The archaeological investigations completed by CRA provided insight on the kind of goods available to Baptisttown families as they adjusted to post-war life in Evansville. Both of these provide important reference materials for historical archaeology and archaeology in an urban setting.
Friends of Historic Allen Chapel AME Church (Terre Haute)
The Friends of Historic Allen Chapel, Inc. will receive the award for “Outstanding Grant-Assisted Rehabilitation” for their work on the 1913 Allen Chapel AME Church in Terre Haute.
In 2017, the DNR Division of Historic Preservation & Archaeology awarded this organization a competitive matching grant of $33,650 from the federal Historic Preservation Fund. Work included replacing crumbled plaster inside the two stair towers, rehabilitating one badly deteriorated staircase that was unsafe for use, and cleaning and refinishing some interior woodwork features. All work conformed to established historic preservation standards. The group was eligible for this federal pass-through grant from the National Park Service because they are a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, and the building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Denton Floyd Real Estate Group/M. Fine and Sons Building (New Albany)
The Indiana Historic Preservation Award for “Outstanding Rehabilitation Tax Credit Project” will be presented to Denton Floyd Real Estate Group for their work on the M. Fine and Sons Building in New Albany.
The M. Fine and Sons Building was constructed in 1922 and designed by the noted Louisville architectural firm of Joseph and Joseph. The rehabilitation involved the conversion of the approximately 115,000 square-foot industrial building into 108 units of senior housing. Of particular note was the restoration of all of the original steel industrial windows, which totaled approximately 5,500 square feet and 7,310 individual panes.
Pleasant Ridge Neighborhood Association (Charlestown)
The National Register staff will present an Indiana Historic Preservation Award to the Charlestown Pleasant Ridge Neighborhood Association in recognition of its outstanding grassroots efforts to preserve the Pleasant Ridge Historic District.
In 1941, the U.S. Government built the Indiana Army Ammunition Plant near Charlestown, creating an influx of 27,000 workers who needed housing. The Gunnison Homes Company built hundreds of prefabricated houses, and by 1943 ammunition plant workers and their families were moving into the modest houses. The Charlestown Pleasant Ridge Neighborhood Association was founded five years ago and has rehabilitated houses, sponsored neighborhood events, and nominated Pleasant Ridge to the National Register, making it the first area of World War II worker housing in Indiana to achieve this status.
Media contact: Jeannie Regan-Dinius, Special Projects Coordinator, DHPA, 317-234-1268.