Sun 21 Feb 2010
I’ve recently taken on the daunting task of collecting my family history files from amongst my relatives and trying to organize (and possibly digitize) them all. My family, especially my grandfather and aunt, have been researching our family for a long time and have amassed quite a collection of notes and documents. When I picked up the first boxes of files from my aunt a couple of weeks ago one of the first things I pulled out was a small folder entitled “The Duvic’s in the Vieux Carre.” My grandfather put together this brief history of his family in New Orleans’ French Quarter and included photos of the buildings they lived and worked in. So today I thought I would share my first bit of family history and talk about these buildings.
My 3rd great grandfather Jean Conrad Duvic came to New Orleans from Liepvre, Alsace, France in 1846. Conrad was the eldest of 10 children who immigrated to the United States over a period of time prior to the American Civil War. Their parents, Jean Baptiste and Marie Catherine Duvic, arrived in 1850 but were killed in a carriage accident soon after their arrival (a story for another day). Jean Conrad purchased three lots on Hospital Street (today Governor Nicholls St.) that have become known as the “Spanish Stables” in New Orleans, despite having been constructed (in 1834) long after the Spanish left. It was here that the Duvic’s worked as blacksmiths and carriage makers.
According to his notes, the photographs included in my grandfather’s folder come from the Williams Research Center, including photos from the Vieux Carré Survey and…HABS? I was surprised to see the Historic American Buildings Survey referenced among my family papers so I headed over the Library of Congress’ website to look it up. Sure enough there is a HABS record for the ‘Spanish Stables’ not documented by a HABs team but by architect Richard Koch.
Richard Koch's photo of the 'Spanish Stables'
I know from my grandfather’s records that there are many more photos of the stables available, but this is the only one from the Library of Congress. The Duvic’s sold the property before 1900 and in 1962 the property was purchased and rehabilitated by Clay Shaw into luxury apartments. I visited the property the last time I was in New Orleans and snapped a photo:
The Stables today
Interestingly, I did a few google searches while writing this post and came across a lot of strange tidbits about this property including a story about Brigham Young. Rest assured, this is the first of many posts I will be writing about the Duvic’s in the Vieux Carré.
Sat 23 Jan 2010
A link was recently sent to me by a family member that led me to a website for Mary Our Queen Church located in Norcross, Georgia, a suburb northeast of Atlanta. Apparently, the church’s pastor had the idea that instead of constructing a brand new church on their property, they would deconstruct the historic St. Gerard’s Church and relocate it to Norcross. St. Gerard’s was built in 1911 in Buffalo, New York and has been vacant since 2008 when it was closed due to a decline in the Catholic population in the area. The basis for the Norcross church’s decision was that the new church they planned to build had a similar footprint to St. Gerard’s and that it would cost less to move the historic church than to construct a new one.
I can see why so many people are excited about this project and see it as a positive idea, but I must admit that I am somewhat horrified by the whole project. Moving historic buildings is not uncommon and it has saved some truly great buildings from demolition in the past. The important difference here is that St. Gerard’s isn’t simply being moved, it is being deconstructed piece by piece, shipped 900 miles south, and rebuilt with a new structural frame. What methods will be used in the reconstruction? What elements of the original craftsmanship will be lost during the deconstruction? Generally, when a building is being moved it is because another project is planned for its current site and it is threatened with demolition. As far as I can tell from the provided information, there is no demolition threat to St. Gerard’s and in fact that building has only been vacant for a mere two years. I have seen more poorly built structures last decades without any maintenance or tenants, so it is difficult to argue that demolition by neglect was an imminent threat to the church.
The economic situation in Buffalo has had a major impact on some truly amazing historic buildings in the area and I can understand the concern of residents worried about losing the church. However, two years is such a short amount of time in a building’s life to exclude all other options and choose such a drastic measure. I don’t think the members of the Norcross church fully understand the implications of what they are doing either. Completely removing a building from its historic context causes it irreparable damage and this is a great loss for Buffalo. The fact of the matter is that Atlanta, and especially Norcross, simply doesn’t have the this type of grand architecture and they risk misrepresenting the church by moving it. Possibly the most mind-boggling part of this whole story is the price tag: $40 million. I can’t help but think of the charities and preservation organizations that would benefit from such a sum of money.
It was discouraging to see so many preservationists supporting this move on their website, but I think Preservation Buffalo Niagara made some excellent points in their response. They recognize they have a long, uphill struggle to attend to in their region and recognize that this isn’t a battle they should focus their efforts on. I am interested to see how this project pans out and would like to hear everyone else’s thoughts on the matter. You can read about it on their website, MovedByGrace.com.
Sat 2 Jan 2010
Posted by Erica under Admin, Genealogy
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As you may have noticed, while this blog is supposed to be about both Historic Preservation and Genealogy, it has focused more on the former since its inception. The fact of the matter is that I have had very little time for personal genealogy research these past few months and I feel it is unethical to discuss the research I am conducting for my clients here. My hope is that this year I will be able to better merge Historic Preservation and Genealogy and make an overall better effort to post more often. This past week I have completely reorganized my office so that I may better accomplish my goals for this year and to make room for the influx of family genealogy files I will be receiving soon. I still see Genealogy and Historic Preservation as interrelated fields and I hope this year I find more ways to bridge the gaps between the two.
So what is on the agenda for 2010? A new semester of grad school begins in about a week, which I’m sure will keep me busy with various projects and copious amounts of reading. I will be starting a few side projects this month as well that will keep me busy and focused on developing my professional skills. There are some exciting new technologies out for genealogy including Google Wave and iFamily so I hope to be spending some time exploring those this year. I’m also setting a goal to find a better way to organize my 5+ years of preservation educational materials so that I may condense the ever-growing amount of paper in my home. Finally I would like to make the time to accept more clients on Ancestry.com’s Expert Connect because I have seen so many interesting projects pop up on there lately. And of course I am getting married later this year, which is a big project of its own.
I wish everyone a Happy New Year and look forward to reading about your own projects this year!
Sun 22 Nov 2009
- Danvers State Hospital. Massachusetts
The need for preservation of historic buildings and structures was first illustrated to me by the building pictured above, a massive sprawling structure that was built in 1878 to house the mentally ill. Mental health has never been a particularly bright spot in American history and indeed many would prefer to forget the things these buildings represent. The improvements in mental health care that developed in the 1970s made large mental hospitals such as Danvers obsolete and thus sealed their fate. Danvers State Hospital, and many others like it, are constantly being abandoned and demolished and we are quickly losing an important piece of history, however unpleasant it may be. Danvers’ 500-acre campus was abandoned in 1992 and after over a decade of neglect and a lawsuit it was demolished in 2006, leaving only the shell of the administration building in which they built apartments and condos.
Danvers State Hospital during 2006 demolition
Perhaps it has something to do with growing up in a society that takes little pride in its public and institutional buildings, but it seems inherently wrong to allow some our largest and most beautiful structures succumb to demolition by neglect. Recently, the Georgia Trust released their 2010 Places in Peril list that listed Central State Hospital in Milledgeville as one of Georgia’s most endangered buildings. The hospital opened in 1842 and at one time was one of the largest mental hospitals in America.While CSH is still in operation, there are several buildings that have been abandoned since the 1970s and some photographers have documented the decaying structures. Consider the uproar that would surely occur if an impressive, high-style, 19th-century building like this one were being neglected in your town. It is doubtful that people would not try to preserve a school or government building such as this, but because these hospitals represent a darker part of our history it is acceptable to neglect them?
Ohio University, formerly Athens Lunatic Asylum
It is easy to write off these buildings as being beyond saving because indeed, some are, and there is no simple solution for rehabilitating such a building. The mental hospital campus represents a building (and landscape) type that has no place in modern society and yet we preservationists often manage to find new uses for these defunct buildings. A great example of continuing use of a mental hospital is the Athens Lunatic Asylum, which was rehabilitated by Ohio University to include academic and administrative space as well as a nature preserve on the surrounding land. Not only did the university preserve the buildings, but by continuing its institutional purpose they have managed to preserve some of its cultural landscape as well. You can view a tour of the campus on their website and read a bit of history about each building.
We do ourselves a disservice when we ignore our history and often pay a price for it later. I hope that Central State Hospital’s inclusion on the Places in Peril list means that we are finally realizing the importance of these buildings and willing to put forth the time, money, and effort to save them.
Sun 15 Nov 2009
Posted by Erica under Genealogy
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As you may (or may not) know, I am currently working towards my Master of Heritage Preservation degree in Historic Preservation at Georgia State University. I began this degree about a year and a half after completing by Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Historic Preservation at the Savannah College of Art and Design. While it had not been my plan to begin my masters degree so soon, the state of our national economy warranted going back to school sooner than planned. Now I am on track to finish my Masters by May of 2011 and I’m looking forward to meeting the Secretary of the Interior’s Qualification Standards for preservation professionals. This will mean I will be graduating with a combined 7 years of education and experience in historic preservation, so it might surprise you to learn that I’m considering additional educational opportunities.
Although I have been involved with genealogy for several years, I had not taken it on professionally up until recently. I have been fortunate that there is some overlap in research methodology for buildings and people, but I think there is always more to learn. While I may be able to conduct the necessary research, I would like to develop my skills further and study the standards of professional genealogists. The options for genealogical studies are somewhat limited, especially if you don’t live in Utah, which is almost a hub of genealogy research in America. There are some free courses, some week-long intensive courses, Associates and Bachelors degrees, and online certificates/degrees all of which have their pros and cons. Right now I’m looking at the National Institute for Genealogical Studies online program and the National Genealogical Society‘s home study course, since both will allow me to work at my own pace from home and won’t interfere with my current studies. I feel either program will enable me to eventually apply for certificiation, which is my ultimate goal. I haven’t made any final decisions yet while I read up on my options but I’m interested to hear your thoughts and experiences with genealogical studies, so leave a comment! I will keep you updated on my decision.
Mon 2 Nov 2009
Posted by Erica under Research
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I received some exciting news the other day that I have been eager to share, but I wanted to get the new design for this blog into place before I posted about it. As you may know, last year I worked for the City of Casselberry, Florida as their Historic Preservation Planner Intern where I had the opportunity to work on a number of different projects. One of these projects was the development of a Preservation Plan for the city, which included a proposal for a Historic Marker Program that the city could implement to highlight its historic sites. From my proposal, the city selected four markers that have recently been installed at the various historic sites. This is very exciting for me because two of these markers were the result of some extensive research into property records and family history. As a researcher, it can be frustrating to have your findings never be read by anyone but yourself, so I am very pleased with the outcome in this case. More importantly, the City of Casselberry has taken a big step towards raising awareness of their history and it really is a great story. You can read more about the city here or watch a slide show here.
John & Annie Griffin Historic Marker
Annie Griffin platted the first subdivision in Casselberry back in 1889, over 50 years before the city was even incorporated. The story of the Griffins in central Florida is rather dramatic; hopefully I can post more about it soon. Very little was known about the area’s history prior to the 1920s when I began my research, so it is great to see some earlier history highlighted in this way!
Concord Cemetery Historic Marker
Concord Cemetery was probably one of the largest research projects I have ever undertaken because it involved not only an extensive genealogy search, but a chain of title that involved two counties and oral history interviews. Now passersby can recognize that this is a cemetery and not simply a vacant lot! If you are ever in Central Florida I urge you to drive through Casselberry and see its historic sites, as well as its great parks.
