Preservation Month: Historic Property Redevelopment Week

by | May 10, 2024

This week we shared program highlights and more about the value of preservation in our everyday lives. Take a look at our HPRP feature content and make sure to follow along on social each week this month!

Rock Run Mill

Rock Run Mill – and check out this custom sketch! The Maryland Park Service (Maryland Department of Natural Resources) and Preservation Maryland are partnered on the project and work will result in restoration of the roof, windows, doors, masonry, and structural components of the late 18th-century mill, as well as site work to protect the foundation from flood damage.

Built in 1797 along the banks of the Susquehanna River, Rock Run Mill is a surviving connection to when the wheat and flour trade provided a much-needed economic foundation for the new American republic. Maryland’s Piedmont Region saw the establishment of many commercial grist mills among other early industries during the latter half of the 18th century. The appearance of these mills coincided with the Seven Years War and the American Revolution, and they signified Baltimore’s emergence as a major seaport and foreshadowed the rise of American industry in the 19th century.

This project is being supported by a Historic Preservation Fund grant administered by the National Park Service, Department of the Interior.

417 N. Jonathan Street

417 N. Jonathan Street in Hagerstown, Md. 

Completed in 2021, Preservation Maryland and the project team took great care to protect as much of the historic fabric as possible through conscientious design, utilization of historic preservation techniques, and the intentional selection of new materials on – and in – the cabin where reuse of the original was not feasible. 

The cabin, which has since been sold to a family (throughout hundreds of years, 417 was always a home, and it was important to us that it continue to serve that same purpose within the Jonathan Street community) and was fitted with a new standing seam metal roof as well as new siding that will protect the nearly 300-year-old logs from the elements. At the back, there is an addition occupying the same footprint as one that existed historically. 

Our 417 N. Jonathan Street Walkthrough from September 2021:

Meet the Team!

Although our projects are always a team effort – from development to community engagement to communications outreach – if you’re a Historic Property Redevelopment project partner you know these faces!

Laura Houston is our Director of Revitalization Initiatives where she oversees the program, serving as primary liaison between the organization and its program partners, architects, engineers, construction firms, property owners, and developers.

Maggie Pelta-Pauls is our Redevelopment Project Lead where she manages projects like the Historic Resource Study with the Maryland Park Service.

Questions for the team? Laura can be reached at Lhouston@presmd.org and Maggie at Mpelta-pauls@presmd.org

Berlin House:

Today’s Historic Property Redevelopment Program feature is the Berlin House in Frederick County, Md. Originally deeded in 1787, the house is one of twelve buildings that predate the current town name of Brunswick, which was previously known as Berlin prior to 1890. Preservation Maryland is currently working with the the City of Brunswick, MD on its rehabilitation into a community heritage space that will connect past to present and help reinvest in the downtown.

Preservation 🤝 Storytelling

Storytelling and preservation go hand-in-hand, and our Historic Property Redevelopment projects have stories to tell! From a home that likely belonged to Hagerstown, Md.’s namesake Jonathan Hager to a 18th-century gristmill that signified Baltimore’s emergence as a major seaport and foreshadowed the rise of American industry in the 19th century, the stories these structures hold are valuable connections to our past. 

In addition to the storytelling you see on our blog, we create signage for the site that often features history, the plan for the structure, and our funders/partners.

Assisting Public Agencies

Our Historic Property Redevelopment Program allows us to protect historic resources through various approaches, including via partnerships that utilize our staff’s preservation project management knowledge to expand capacity for public agencies.

Preservation Maryland is working on a system-wide historic resource survey of Maryland Park Service (Maryland Department of Natural Resources) lands. The Maryland Park Service is responsible for the management of many historic resources located on public lands throughout the state and has acquired between 1,000-2,000 historic structures since the 1950s that have not been comprehensively tracked. Our work together will provide a greater understanding of the number, location, characteristics, and condition of historic structures presently under MPS management to help make more informed decisions regarding the management and future of its historic structures.

Thank you to our project partners!

Wrapping up our Historic Property Redevelopment Program #PreservationMonth feature week with a show of appreciation for our current project partners! 

The City of Brunswick on the Berlin House, The City Of Annapolis and the National Park Service Chesapeake Gateways on Burtis House, Howard County and Maryland School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation on the historic Ellicott City Jail, the Maryland Park Service and Maryland Department of Natural Resources on Rock Run Mill and the parks Resource Study, and the Robert W. Johnson Community Center. 
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