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Guide to NPS Cultural Resources Publications Collection

This finding aid describes the National Park Service (NPS) Cultural Resources Publications Collection, part of the NPS History Collection. To search this guide for names, places, key words, or phrases enter Ctrl F on your keyboard (command key + F key on a Mac). Request an in-person research appointment or get more information by contacting the archivist.

Collection Overview

Collection Number: HFCA 1645 (Series E)
Creator: National Park Service
Title: National Park Service Cultural Resources Publications Collection
Dates: 1978-2012
Volume of Collection: 4.0 LF
Language of Materials: English

Digitized copies: This collection has not been digitized. However, scanned copies of most CRM Bulletin, CRM, and CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship are available online at https://www.nps.gov/crps/CRMJournal/index.html. Common Ground magazine is available online at https://www.nps.gov/crps/commonground/index.html.

Conditions Governing Access: This collection is open to research use.
Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use: These publications are in the public domain, but authors should be appropriately credited. See the NPS general copyright & restrictions information.
Provenance: Assembled from mailings received through the NPS Harpers Ferry Center library and found in the NPS History Collection.
Processing Note: This collection was processed by Aileen Chung, Crista Cagney, Amanda Carter, and Abigail Thompson in January 2019. Finding aid updated for the internet by Nancy Russell, August 2025.

Rights Statements for Archival Description: This guide is in the public domain.
Preferred Citation: National Park Service Cultural Resources Publications Collection, NPS History Collection (HFCA 1645)
Location of Repository: NPS History Collection, Harpers Ferry Center, PO Box 50, Harpers Ferry, WV 25425

Related Materials:

Administrative History Note

The National Park Service (NPS) Cultural Resource Management Division began publishing CRM Bulletin in February 1978. The journal served as a technical bulletin for NPS cultural resources staff and was distributed to employees responsible for managing historical, architectural, and archeological properties.

CRM Bulletin was renamed CRM with Volume 14 in 1991, the layout changed, and new departments were added. The publication’s audience expanded to “parks, Federal agencies, states, local governments, and the private sector” to promote and maintain high standards for preserving and managing cultural resources. New topics included Washington Reports, Information Management, Bulletin Board, Viewpoint, and Preservation Resources. Editorial advisors were established to ensure the magazine contains high quality materials that reflect the interdisciplinary nature of the cultural resources programs. It was published through 2002.

The NPS published CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship twice each year from 2003 through 2011. It was designed to address the history, development of, and emerging issues in cultural resource management in the United States and abroad. Its purpose was to broaden the intellectual foundation of the management of cultural resources. Replacing the CRM with CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship was part of a larger restructuring of cultural resources publications and productions, including Common Ground and Heritage News, to reflect the priorities of Secretary of the Interior Gale A. Norton. The secretary emphasized the "Four C's—Consultation, Communication, and Cooperation, all in the service of Conservation.” This new journal represented an effort to better communicate with the heritage community and the public.

The CRM series was not the only cultural resources journal produced by the NPS. In April 1988 Federal Archeology Report was created by the Archeological Assistance Division to improve communication within federal archeology and inform those outside the federal system. The initial mailing list for this newsletter included federal and state historic preservation offices, federal and state archeologists, and others. The newsletter was initially published several times each year to announce activities and meetings and to distribute information on topics of interest or concern.

Beginning with the September 1991 issue, Federal Archeology Report was published by the departmental consulting archeologist in the Archeological Assistance Division. In Summer 1994, its name changed to Federal Archeology. In spring 1996 it was replaced by the new publication, Common Ground: Archeology and Ethnography in the Public Interest, produced by the NPS departmental consulting archeologist and the Archeology and Ethnography Program. In 2003, the magazine relaunched as Common Ground: Preserving Our Nation's Heritage, marking a new beginning for this flagship cultural resources publication. The editors widened the magazine's focus beyond archeology and ethnography to offer a multidisciplinary look at all aspects of cultural resource management and historic preservation. Common Ground cease publication in 2012.

Scope and Content Note

Journals, magazines, and other publications produced by NPS cultural resource management programs to share information and best practices regarding historic preservation, federal archeology, ethnography, history, and museums. Includes CRM Bulletin, CRM, CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship, Federal Archeology Report, and Common Ground. Topics include archeological investigations; remote sensing; cultural resources planning; fire and cultural resources; anthropology; legislation; historical research; Native American structures, collections, and ethnology; historic furnishings and decorative arts; museum collection management; museum conservation; historic structures and preservation; cultural landscapes; historic structures reports; documentation of cultural resources; and preservation partnerships. Articles featuring activities in individual national parks are prevalent.

Arrangement

Organized into four series by publication, as follows:

Series I: CRM Bulletins, 1978-2002
Series II: CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship, 2003-2011
Series III: Federal Archeology Report, 1988-1996, 1999
Series IV: Common Ground, 1996-2001, 2003-2011

Series I: CRM Bulletins, 1978-2002

Volume of the series: 2.0 LF

Scope and Content Note

CRM Bulletin and CRM featuring preservation and management guidelines produced by the NPS. CRM Bulletin magazines date from 1978 to 1990. Examples of topics discussed include archeological investigations; remote sensing; cultural resources planning; fire and cultural resources; anthropology; legislation; historical research; Native American structures, collections, and ethnology; historic furnishings and decorative arts; museum collection management; museum conservation; historic structures and preservation; cultural landscapes; historic structures reports; documentation of cultural resources; and preservation partnerships. CRM from 1991 to 2002 are present. Each volume is organized into two sections: features and departments. “Features” includes essays and “how to” articles on topics such as planning; survey, evaluation, and documentation; management and protection; curation; interpretation; and preservation methods. “Departments” include reports from the NPS Washington Office on the status of regulations and policy changes; computer applications and information management; training and meeting notices; letters to the editor; book reviews; and information about preservation organizations. Limited early correspondence regarding receiving and contributing to CRM Bulletin is present. NPS Preservation Tech Notes are present in some of the CRM magazines, as originally mailed to recipients.

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically by year.

Container List

BOX 01
1978 to 1991

BOX 02
1991 to 1995

BOX 03
1995 to 1997

BOX 04
1998 to 2000

BOX 05
2001 to 2002

Series II: CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship, 2003-2011

Volume of series: 0.8 LF

Scope and Content Note

Complete run of CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship. Examples of topics covered in the journal include archeological investigations and modeling; historical research and resources; building surveys; feasibility studies and plans; ethnography; interviews with professionals in the field; cultural landscapes; World War II heritage; Mission 66; September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks; roads and bridges; Native American history; Japanese American history; Buffalo soldiers; ranches; battlefields; and reviews of books, exhibits, and media. Articles on international cultural resource management projects are also present.

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically by year.

Container List

BOX 01
2003 to 2009

BOX 02
2010 to 2011

Series III: Federal Archeology, 1988-1996, 1999

Volume of series: 0.4 LF

Scope and Content Note

Complete run of Federal Archeology Report from 1988-1994. Incomplete run of Federal Archeology from 1994 to 1996 (missing Vol. 8, No. 2). Also includes the 1996-1997 Federal Archeology Program Report to Congress, produced in 1999.

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically by year.

Container List

BOX 01
1988 to 1999

Series IV: Common Ground, 1996-2001, 2003-2012

Volume of series: 0.8 LF

Scope and Content Note

Incomplete run of Common Ground magazine, spanning 1996 to 2001 and 2003-2012. Missing two volumes: 1997 (Vol. 2 No. 3/4) and 1998 (Vol. 3 No. 1). Only one volume available for 2012. No volumes were published in 2002. Examples of topics discussed include national historic landmarks; preservation projects; Frank Lloyd Wright; Russel Wright; Scotty’s Castle at Death Valley; agricultural history; Alaskan heritage; night skies; the Wilderness Act; slavery; urban renewal; Frederick Law Olmstead; Ellis Island; post-industrial cities such as Pittsburg, Buffalo, and Detroit; Manzanar; architectural restoration; covered bridges; and other subjects.

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically by year.

Container List

BOX 01
1996 to 2007

BOX 02
2008 to 2012

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Last updated: August 10, 2025