Part 5: Identification of Historic Resources

Identification is the process of gathering information about prehistoric and historic properties in an area, generally by means of background research and a field survey. Preservation planning emphasizes the use of information rather than simply its accumulation. The information needs of planners and decision-makers will determine the depth and range of identification activities. A survey is the gathering of data on the historical and physical character of a community or region through historical research and field identification. Surveys should be designed to provide information needed to make decisions for planning, evaluation, registration, protection, interpretation, and other purposes.

Most historic and archaeological resources are initially identified through some kind of survey. A survey results in a report describing the activities and findings, and in an inventory, or repository of information on specific properties evaluated as significant. Inventories also contain information on historic and archeological resources identified during the survey, and on areas surveyed which do not contain historic properties. Inventories aid in planning, evaluation, registration, and protection.

Setting Up a Survey

Although the mechanics of conducting a survey will vary according to the type of survey needed and the types of historic resources to be identified, there are several features common to successful surveys. Survey efforts are most efficient when they are based on preservation planning that suggests what types of survey are most needed and where they are needed. Many surveys, however, are often conducted as a precursor to imminent construction. A logical plan for surveying will result in consistency of information and cost effectiveness.

A survey team is usually composed of a professional historian, architectural historian, historic landscape architect, and/or an archaeologist. These professionals may be public employees or a private consultants working for the State historic preservation office, the mayor, the regional planning commission, a Federal agency, or a private real estate developer. Persons knowledgeable about the resources to be dealt with are important participants, either as local informants or as members of the survey team.

Background research is an important element in locating and evaluating resources. Data already known from previous surveys and research studies, and about historic patterns of land use, economic change, social interaction, and technological innovation can help identify where historic sites may be located, what they might look like, and what associations they might have with broad patterns of local, regional, and national prehistory or history. Such preliminary information can usually be obtained from the State historic preservation office, planning agencies, research collections of State universities, and historical archive collections in local libraries and historical societies. More specialized background data can be gleaned by examining published histories, including town histories, historical atlases, and photographic archives. Most communities have historical societies or museums that will be of help. A basic familiarity with available ethnographic and archaeological literature on the area is vital for a survey to be comprehensive.

Surveys can be designed in a variety of ways. Choosing the appropriate survey depends on the kind of information sought, how it will be used, how quickly it is needed, the amount of money and personnel available, and the size of the region being surveyed. "The Secretary of the Interior's Standards and Guidelines," contain specific information on survey methods and types of information that should be gathered. A useful discussion of various survey approaches for archaeological resources is found in National Register bulletin Guidelines for Local Survey: A Basis for Preservation Planning.

Since it is impossible to collect all information that may be available about a property or an area, data collection is inherently selective, especially given constraints of time and money. Therefore, surveys should be undertaken with a clear idea of the eventual use(s) of the data collected. At a minimum, the data should be sufficient to determine whether the resources identified during the survey are of sufficient importance to be eligible for listing in the National Register, and what priority they might have in local planning. Information needed to identify and evaluate the significance of resources against the standards of the National Register includes:

• Description of the property's physical appearance,
• Assessment of its historic, architectural, or archeological integrity,
• Statement of its significance,
• Map with clearly delineated boundaries, and
• Photographs.

Information needed for other uses, such as decision-making about treatment or land use, may require the collection of additional data. To ensure flexibility and efficiency, survey data should be collected in a format which allows it to be analyzed and used for a variety of purposes, such as for a National Register nomination, for making a decision on a rezoning application, or in a publication. If the survey information is recorded in a computer data base, it can be combined with other information (such as a GIS land-use map or a text on the history of an area) for a variety of purposes.

It is important that, at some point, an area be surveyed for all of the various resource types that may exist there, even though one resource type - buildings or archaeological sites, for example - may be the survey's focus at a particular time. Many historical resources have archaeological or historic landscape components. Therefore, it is desirable for the survey team to consist of more than one professional discipline.

Survey Methods

Every survey should be based on a statement of objectives, or research design. The research design should include the following: 1) Objectives of the survey. For example: to characterize the range of historic properties in an area, or to identify the number of properties associated with a historic context. 2) Methods to be used to obtain the information. For example: archival research and field survey. 3) The expected results. More detailed information about research designs can be found in the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and Guidelines for Identification.

Surveys may be loosely grouped into two categories, according to the level of effort required and the detail of the results. First are surveys that result in a general characterization of a region's historic properties. This kind of survey is sometimes referred to as a "windshield," or a "reconnaissance" survey. The second category of survey provides for a more detailed identification and description of specific historic properties in an area; this kind of survey is sometimes referred to as "intensive."

Reconnaissance surveys provide a general understanding of the historic properties in a particular area. A reconnaissance survey should document the kinds of properties looked for; the boundaries of the area surveyed; the method of survey, including the extent of survey coverage; the kinds of historic properties present in the surveyed area; specific properties that were identified, and the categories of information collected; and places examined that did not contain historic properties.

Intensive surveys describe in greater detail the distribution of properties in an area; determine the number, location, and condition of properties; determine the types of properties present in an area; and record the physical extent of specific properties. An intensive survey should document: the kinds of properties looked for; the boundaries of the area surveyed; the method of survey; a record of the precise location of all properties identified; and information on the appearance, significance, integrity, and boundaries of each property sufficient to permit an evaluation of its significance. A survey technique used by archaeologists is "site testing" sometimes called "site survey" if the data collection focus is an individual site. Small, subsurface excavations, such as "shovel tests," are frequently used to collect detailed information on a particular site's boundaries, the depth and characteristics of archaeological deposits, and the types of features that are present.

Reporting Survey Results

A report should be prepared on each survey conducted. These survey reports should begin with the statement of objectives or research design upon which the survey was based. The report should respond to each of the major points documenting: 1) objectives; 2) area researched or surveyed; 3) methods used, including the intensity of the coverage; and 4) results: how the results met the objectives of the survey; a results analysis; implications and recommendations; and where the compiled information is located.

Role of the Review Board in Surveys

It is important for board members to understand survey purposes and methods because one of the board's primary responsibilities - the review of National Register nominations - is an outgrowth of survey. Many National Register nominations are based on information from surveys that have earmarked significant resources for further evaluation, registration, and protection. By knowing the structure and rationale behind the surveys conducted in their State, Review Board members are better able to obtain a perspective on the properties proposed for listing in the National Register.

There are several ways the Review Board can aid the SHPO, who is charged with managing a statewide plan for historic resource survey and inventory. Among these are:

• Advising the SHPO and the State staff in the establishment of a priority system and schedule for surveys that is consistent with the State's historic preservation plan;
• Assisting the SHPO and State staff with ensuring adequate funding bases and appropriate procedures for surveys, including surveys by Federal agencies with projects that might affect historic resources, ongoing State surveys, locally initiated surveys, and any combination of the above;
• Advising the SHPO of threatened areas or properties that need the immediate critical attention of a survey;
• Assisting the SHPO review grant applications for survey projects; and
• Promoting historic resource surveys among government officials, private businesses, and interested citizens as vital to recognizing and evaluating preservation-worthy properties as well as integrating their protection into State and local planning processes.

Suggested Reading

Birnbaum, Charles A. (editor), "Focus on Landscape Preservation," Historic Preservation Forum Vol. 7 No. 3, May/June 1993.

Blumenson, John J.G. Identifying American Architecture: A Pictorial Guide to Styles and Terms: 1600-1945. Nashville: American Association for State and Local History, 1990 (paperback edition).

Burns, John A., ed. Recording Historic Structures. Washington, D.C.: The American Institute of Architects Press, 1989.

Derry, Anne; Jandl, H. Ward; Shull, Carol D.; and Thorman, Jan. National Register Bulletin Guidelines for Local Surveys: A Basis for Preservation Planning. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior, 1977. Revised, 1985, by Patricia L. Parker. Available from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service, 1849 C Street, NW, Room NC400, Washington, D.C. 20240. Free.

Hester, Thomas R., Harry J. Shafer, and Kenneth L. Feder. Field Methods in Archaeology. Seventh edition. Mountain View, California: Mayfield Publishing Company, 1997.

McAlester, Virginia and Lee. A Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1986.

National Park Service, "Archeology and Historic Preservation: Secretary of the Interior's Standards and Guidelines," Federal Register. September 29, 1983. Available from Heritage Preservation Services, National Park Service, 1849 C Street, NW, Room NC330, Washington, D.C. 20240. Free.

O'Donnell, Eleanor. National Register Bulletin: Researching a Historic Building. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior, 1990. Available from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service, 1849 C Street, NW, Room NC400, Washington, D.C. 20240. Free.

Poppeliers, John. What Style Is It? New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1995.