VENTURES
historic
spring 2013
volume 1
1, number 1
JeFF Klee
Pear Valley, a yeoman planter’s cottage
built in 1740 in Eastville, was recently
listed as a National Historic Landmark.
State of Preservation in Virginia
By Betsy Wells Edwards
H
inside
3 Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits
5 The Immortal Henrietta Lacks
6 Stabilizing the Historic
Jamestowne Church Tower
istoric preservation is nothing new for Virginians. We have been saving
historic sites for hundreds of years. Somehow, as early as the nineteenth century, we knew it was important to save the places where the
history of our country, our state, and our families occurred.
In 1807, while Thomas Jefferson was president, the still new country
celebrated the 200th anniversary of the landing at Jamestown with a festive
Jamestown Jubilee near the ruin of the old Jamestown Church Tower. Eightysix years later in 1893, 22.5 acres of Jamestown Island along with church
tower ruins were purchased by the Association for the Preservation of Virginia
Antiquities (APVA). In the 120 years since, Preservation Virginia/APVA
has saved scores of historic places across the state.
Over the last century, we’ve learned that historic preservation never
ends and the methods for saving places are constantly evolving. In the past,
Preservation Virginia might have purchased a building and turned it into
a historic site. Today, we work with individuals, groups, or entire communities
to find preservation solutions. Across Virginia you can see the tangible
results of preservation.
The statistics are impressive. More than 2,800 properties are listed on
the Virginia Landmarks Register; the state has 480 National Historic Districts;
and nearly 2,800 structures in the Commonwealth are on the National
Register of Historic Places. The Main Street Program is working to preserve
and revitalize more than 20 historic downtowns and Main Streets in Virginia.
These numbers tell just part of the story. In tiny crossroads and large cities
across the state, Virginians are coming together to save homes, barns, schools,
continu ed on pa g e 4
Prose from the President
A Productive Place to Be
P
Preservation Virginia, a private non-profit organization
and statewide historic preservation leader founded
in 1889, is dedicated to perpetuating and revitalizing
Virginia’s cultural, architectural and historic heritage
thereby ensuring that historic places are integral parts
of the lives of present and future generations.
Board of Trustees
Anne Geddy Cross
Board President
Pettus LeCompte
Richmond, Virginia
Genevieve P. Keller
Anne Carter Lee Gravely
Rocky Mount, Virginia
Charlottesville, Virginia
Patricia Loughridge
Richmond, Virginia
Hanover, Virginia
VICE-President
Alexander C. Graham, Jr.
VICE-President
William Luke
Henrico, Virginia
Gary Ometer, CPA
Trip Pollard
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Rebecca S. Starling
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Midlothian, Virginia
VICE-President
Joseph Cheely
Treasurer
Richmond, Virginia
Chief Kenneth Adams
King William, Virginia
M. Karen Berkness
Midlothian, Virginia
Dr. Warren M. Billings
New Orleans, Louisiana
Audrey Paulette Davis
Washington, D.C.
Ken Farmer
Radford, Virginia
Basil I. Gooden, Ph.D.
Glen Allen, Virginia
John H. Guy, IV
Alexandria, Virginia
Dr. Kevin R. Hardwick
Laird, Virginia
Mary A. R. Howard
Charlottesville, Virginia
Catesby Jones
White Marsh, Virginia
Reggie Stewart
Chester, Virginia
Mark O. Webb
Richmond, Virginia
Jane Yerkes
Williamsburg, Virginia
Mary Zayde Zeugner
Richmond, Virginia
Elizabeth S. Kostelny
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Richmond, Virginia
Honary Board
of Trustees
William G. Beville
Petersburg, Virginia
eople ask if I enjoy serving as President of Preservation Virginia. I
quickly say, yes. I believe in our mission: preservation, education, and
advocating for our historic resources. When asked what has made the
greatest impression, I say that the quantity, variety, and quality of work done
by Preservation Virginia is astonishing.
Preservation manifests itself in many ways across the Commonwealth.
As the statewide voice and resource, Preservation Virginia is involved in
many different issues and often works with people who have never thought
of themselves as preservationists.
Our staff is amazing in the breadth of their knowledge. Their schedules
are demanding and time stretched. Two important activities that I have been
a part of include the Virginia Preservation Conference
in October and the Tax Credit Summit in November.
The information shared and contacts made were
useful when the Virginia General Assembly met. Tax
credits, including historic tax credits, were addressed
in several bills. The legislative alerts sent to our
network were pivotal in protecting those credits. Our
legislative reception in February was another opportunity to talk about their value and other issues.
In March, my attention turned to Patrick Henry’s
Scotchtown, one of our core properties in my own
Hanover County. Preservation Virginia recently
Anne Geddy Cross
PRESIDENT
held a community meeting as a first step to engage
the larger community and get suggestions for new
programming and partnerships at the site. Forty people turned out for a lively
and productive discussion resulting in new ideas for interpreting Patrick
Henry’s life at Scotchtown.
Recently, I was in Williamsburg for a public information session about
the new ticketing system at Historic Jamestowne. This system will allow
Preservation Virginia to collect revenues that will make Historic Jamestowne
more financially secure in the future. At the end of March, Elizabeth Kostelny
and I visited Wilton, the 18th century home saved by our Revolving Fund.
It was a joy to see it being carefully restored by its new owner.
Preservation Virginia is a productive place and I am glad to be part of it all.
C. Hobson Goddin
Richmond, Virginia
Furthering
Our Reach
William B. Kerkam, III
Richmond, Virginia
Shirley T. VanLandingham
Petersburg, Virginia
Preservation
Virginia now has:
D. Anderson Williams
Alexandria, Virginia
SENIOR STAFF
Call 804-648-1889 for:
Elizabeth S. Kostelny
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Louis J. Malon
Director of
Preservation Services
Betsy Wells Edwards
Director of
Development
Justin Sarafin
Director of
Community INITIATIVES
and ENGAGEMENT
Cheryl Greenday
Director of finance
2,200
Jennifer Hurst-Wender
Assoc. Director of
Facebook Friends
museum operations
and education
Call 757-229-4997 for
Historic Jamestowne:
2,043
Twitter Followers
Sheryl Kingery Mays
Director of
Public Programs
and Operations
68,378
Dr. William M. Kelso
Video Views on our
YouTube Channel
Director of
Research and
Interpretation
www.preservationvirginia.org
2
HISTORIC VENTURES
Save the Date
Annual
Preservation
Conference
Hotel Roanoke
October 20–22, 2013
Leader in Tax Credit projects
Revitalizing Communities in Virginia
By Trip Pollard
V
The investment
spurred by the
credits has
supported an
estimated
32,000 jobs and
generated well
over $3.6 billion
in overall economic impact
to the Commonwealth ....
The Tucker Brothers
Store in historic Charlotte
Courthouse was preserved
by Preservation Virginia in
2011 through the use of
the Virginia Rehabilitation
Tax Credits Program.
The 1825 store is a great
example of how tax credits
can assist in the rebirth
of a small community’s
downtown.
3
irginia’s historic rehabilitation tax credits
have been a tremendous success. Year after
year, we have ranked first or second among
the states for the number of historic tax credit
projects proposed and certified. Under both the
federal and state tax credit program the results are
impressive.
According to the Virginia Department of
Historic Resources, $809 million in state tax
credits have been awarded for over 2,000 building
projects throughout the Commonwealth since
the inception of the tax credit program. The
investment spurred by the credits has supported
an estimated 32,000 jobs and generated well over
$3.6 billion in overall economic impact to the
Commonwealth as well as $1.44 billion in wages
and benefits.
The General Assembly adopted legislation
championed by the preservation community in
1996 that grants a tax credit for 25 percent of
eligible expenses to those who renovate historic
buildings. This credit is in addition to a similar
20 percent federal preservation tax credit, and
together they offer a powerful incentive to the
private sector. These
innovative policies
have provided a range
of benefits, including
preserving historic
resources, spurring
economic development, creating jobs,
increasing property
values, enhancing
tourism, reducing the
environmental cost
of development by
reusing buildings, and
helping to revitalize communities.
The state tax credit is only available for
projects that spend at least 50 percent of the
value of the property prior to rehabilitation (or
25 percent if the building is owner-occupied). It
typically is used only for properties needing significant repair and renovation. As a result, the credit
is often used to restore vacant and deteriorating
buildings as it is easier to meet the 25 percent
or 50 percent renovation expenditure. Virginia
Commonwealth University’s Center for Public
Policy has reported that in most cases the expenditures to restore these properties would not have
been made without the tax credits—the projects
simply would not have been financially feasible.
The federal rehabilitation tax credit has been
Preservation virginia
very successful as well, leveraging over $100 billion
in investments nationwide since it was created
in 1978. Over 38,000 buildings have received the
federal credits, and an estimated 2.2 million jobs
have been created. Research by Rutgers University
shows that the program more than pays for itself.
Despite the successful track record of federal
and state rehabilitation tax credits, there have
been proposals to reduce or eliminate these
credits. At the federal level, Preservation Virginia
has worked with the National Trust to counter
proposals to eliminate or curb the tax credit, and
has helped gather endorsements from mayors
across the state for a bill that would strengthen
the credits. [Please see our website for updates on
this and other policy issues].
At the state level, a recent Joint Legislative
Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) study
of the effectiveness of various tax credits highlighted the historic rehabilitation tax credit as
an example of a credit that is accomplishing the
intended goal. Despite the credit’s success, there
were suggestions that the rehabilitation tax credit
might be reduced or eliminated during the 2013
General Assembly session to generate more funds
for transportation.
A bill was introduced that would require all
tax credits to be reenacted or eliminated every
five years, which would create uncertainty and
have a chilling effect on rehabilitation deals, since
they often take years to develop. Preservation Virginia countered these threats, and we are grateful
to all of you who responded to our alerts. We are
pleased to report that the transportation funding
bill ultimately approved by the General Assembly
did not touch the rehabilitation tax credits and
that the bill to sunset tax credits was defeated.
The preservation community should continue
to champion these credits. The General Assembly
has created a Joint Subcommittee to Evaluate
Tax Preferences, and the first meeting on April 2,
2013 focused on both the historic rehabilitation
tax credit and the land preservation tax credit.
It certainly is appropriate—and necessary—for
government officials and the public to evaluate
the effectiveness of such credits. Preservation
Virginia will use the opportunity to further educate legislators about the many benefits and the
strong track record of Virginia’s rehabilitation tax
credit, and we encourage you to do so as well.
We’ve got a great story to tell.
Trip Pollard is a Preservation Virginia Board Trustee,
Co-chair of Public Policy Committee and Senior Attorney
and Leader of the Land and Community Program at the
Southern Environmental Law Center.
Hidden History Series
A Duel to the Death
By Jennifer Hurst-Wender
O
Thanks to the
detailed witness
testimonies
presented at
Underwood’s
trial, we have a
detailed account
of the events
that took place
147 years ago.
n the evening of September 23rd, 1866
Captain James DeWitt Hankins of the Surry
Light Infantry and William Underwood
exchanged insults while drinking in a tavern
in Surry County, resulting in a fight between the
two men.
Captain Hankins was from a well-known
local family and the oldest son of Henry Hankins
and his wife, Louisa, who lived at nearby Bacon’s
Castle. The Castle—a high-style
Jacobean house built in the
mid-1600s—was one of finest
homes in the area.
In the days following the fight,
Hankins sent Underwood a letter
demanding an apology. Hankins
didn’t receive the answer he sought
—Underwood’s reply said there
would be no apology.
It was court day on October
18th, 1866 at the courthouse in
neighboring Isle of Wight County. Hankins had
borrowed a pistol that day from his friend Dr. L.S.
Crump and when he arrived at the courthouse
everyone knew he was armed. Hankins and
Underwood encountered each other as Underwood left the clerk’s office.
“You are the man who attacked me sometime
since,” said Hankins. “I am,” replied Underwood
and stepped back. Hankins continued, “it is the
first time I have had the opportunity to meet you,”
State of Preservation
HISTORIC VENTURES
To learn more hidden histories about
the Hankins family and the other former
residents of Bacon’s Castle, please visit us. The Bacon’s
Castle grounds are open from dawn to dusk, seven
days a week and we offer guided tours Friday and
Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday from
12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information about Preservation Virginia’s
historic sites contact: Jennifer Hurst-Wender, Associate
Director of Museum Operations at 804-648-1889 or
[email protected].
continue d from pa g e 1
churches, cemeteries, battlefields, forts, industrial
buildings, theatres, downtown business districts,
and many other places that are important to us.
Creative partnerships are being formed with
organizations outside historic preservation, such
as businesses, environmental groups, and tourism
councils. We have discovered that our goals are
complementary and we realize that preserving
buildings—rather than tearing them down—is
important. Many towns, cities, and even counties
in Virginia have historic preservation planners.
From Lee County to the Eastern Shore, places
are being saved that protect the history of the
community and demonstrate the tangible and
intangible benefits of preservation. The state is
much richer because we can visit the Barter Theatre on Main Street in Abingdon, enjoy a meal on
the downtown mall in Charlottesville, walk the
streets of the Fan District in Richmond, or work
4
and both drew their guns. Hankins’s gun failed to
go off and Underwood’s shot missed the mark.
Moving in closer, the two grappled. Underwood
managed to fire again, and Hankins fell to
the ground.
Captain Hankins died the next evening at
approximately 8:45 p.m. Hankins’s sister, Virginia,
was with him when he died and recalled, “he asked
that nothing he had said be used as evidence at
the trial,” and added, “‘I forgive everybody’.”
Captain James Dewitt Hankins is buried in the
family cemetery at Bacon’s Castle
in Surry County.
At Underwood’s trial on May 16,
1867, he pleaded not guilty. On
May 30, the jury unanimously
agreed upon his release, declaring,
“he is to be acquitted and discharged
of the murder aforesaid and go there
from without delay.”
in a restored building in Old Town Alexandria.
Twenty-first century preservation is going to
be carried on by future generations. New tools,
such as social media, are going to be used to quickly
get the word out about an endangered place and
form coalitions that can move into action.
Preservation Virginia has changed and evolved
over the past 120+ years as we have looked for
ways to save places that matter to all of us. The
tools have changed, new partners have emerged,
different threats have cropped up, but our mission
is the same. We will continue our long legacy of
protecting the historic places that make Virginia
unique, so that important places of our past can
be part of our future.
Betsy Wells Edwards is the Director of Development for
Preservation Virginia.
UNTOLD STORIES FROM the Rosenwald Schools
The Immortal Cells of Henrietta Lacks
By Sonja Ingram
In the years just after World War I, there were few
educational opportunities for African-American
children in the rural South. However, starting in
1917, that changed when Julius Rosenwald, the
president of Sears Roebuck & Company, started
an initiative to build simple one, two, and four
room schools in African-American communities
in southern states. Inspired by his friendship with
Booker T. Washington and with local support,
Rosenwald ended up constructing nearly 5,000
schools between 1917 and 1932.
More than 380 schools were built in Virginia
and thousands of students received an education in a local Rosenwald School. This article
reveals a story about the life of a Rosenwald
School graduate.
Second Union Rosenwald School, Goochland County
when other cells could not. For over 50 years,
Henrietta’s “immortal cells” have been used for
many medical experiments including cancer and
AIDS research and genetic mapping. HeLa cells
were also used to develop a vaccination for polio.
It wasn’t until the 1970s that Henrietta’s
s you drive down US 360 in rural Halifax
family
found out about her cells and how they had
County you may notice a historical marker
been
used.
As word of Henrietta and her cells grows,
with the name Henrietta Lacks on it. The
so
does
the
admiration for her and her family.
marker stands close to Lacks’s childhood home and
In
1998,
a
BBC
documentary was produced about
the Rosenwald School she attended in the tiny
Lacks
and
in
2010,
Rebecca Skloot wrote The
crossroads of Clover.
Immortal
Life
of
Henrietta
Lacks, detailing HenrietHenrietta Pleasant Lacks isn’t well-known
ta’s
life
and
what
happened
to her cells. In 2010,
to most people. She was born in Roanoke in 1920
HBO
announced
that
Oprah
Winfrey was working
and moved to Halifax County at the age of four
on
a
film
project
based
on
Skloot’s
book.
when her mother died. Henrietta grew up workLacks’s
story
is
a fascinating
ing in the tobacco fields near her
piece
of
Virginia’s
history
and one
home. By 1941 she had married
Lacks’s story is an
that,
until
recently,
probably
David Lacks and moved to Turner’s
amazing piece
would not have been deemed
Station, an African-American
significant enough for a state hiscommunity east of Baltimore.
of Virginia’s history
torical marker.
In 1951, while still in Turner’s
and one that, until
Fortunately, the field of historStation, Henrietta was diagnosed
ic
preservation
has evolved from
with cervical cancer. She was
relatively recently,
the
insular
pursuit
of saving past
treated at Johns Hopkins Medical
probably
would
presidents’
homes
to
a more
Center in Baltimore. During treatinclusive
and
more
local
movement, samples of her cervix were
not have been
ment. As diverse as Virginia’s
removed without her permission for
deemed significant
culture is, so too is the diversity
medical research. Henrietta died in
of historic sites that express our
1951 at the age of thirty-one and
enough for a state
rich cultural legacy. As shown in
was buried without a headstone
historical marker.
the example of Henrietta Lacks,
in Lackstown, an area of Clover.
historic preservationists and
She left behind her husband and
historians are now researching
five children and many friends and
and protecting Virginia’s diverse
family members.
heritage so that a broader view
Without informing Henrietta’s
of our past can be understood
family, her cells, later known as
and celebrated.
HeLa cells, were given to medical
researcher George Gey. Gey found
Sonja Ingram is a Field Representative
that Henrietta’s cells could be
for Preservation Virginia.
miraculously kept alive and grown,
A
Henrietta Lacks
RighT:
Lacks’s historical marker
located on US 360
5
Preservation virginia
HISTORIC Jamestowne
“Unseen” Stabilization of the Jamestown Church Tower
By Andrew Zellers-Frederick
I
t has been nearly half a century since major
preservation and repair work was conducted on
the iconic 17th-century Jamestown Church
Tower; the only “above ground” structure remaining from Virginia’s original colonial capital. This
tower was originally part of an earlier church
abandoned during the 1750s and dismantled in
the 1790s. The tower’s measurements were
approximately 18 feet square and 46 feet tall when
it was first constructed.
Time and harsh weather have not been kind
to this important historic structure, which is
evident both within its interior and on the outside
of the tower. From the building’s ground level,
vast amounts of missing mortar, crumbling bricks,
and an array of growing invasive vegetation are
clearly visible.
As part of the successful collaboration
between Preservation Virginia and The Colonial
Williamsburg Foundation at Historic Jamestowne,
a detailed two-phase plan has been developed
for the initial stabilization and preservation of
the Church Tower. The
project has been declared
a major priority for
2013 by Preservation
Virginia and Colonial
Williamsburg.
The first phase of
the Jamestown Church
Tower Project is scheduled
to begin in early June of
2013 using privately raised
funds. The second phase
will begin in the spring
of 2014. A future third
phase will incorporate
an “unseen” roof system,
which will protect all of
the completed preservation
and stabilization work.
This type of roof will ensure
that the storm water
currently damaging the
structure will be efficiently
and effectively diverted
away from the building.
To support the preservation
and stabilization work of the
iconic Jamestown Church
Tower, please contact
Andrew Zellers-Frederick,
the Director of the Historic
Jamestowne Fund for The
Colonial Williamsburg
Foundation, at 757-220-7466
or [email protected].
Archaeological stabilization
work in progress on
the Historic Jamestowne
Church Tower
6
HISTORIC VENTURES
Notes from the Executive Director
The Power of Historic Places
D
Pear Valley, the Eastern Shore, August 2004
Preservation Virginia
By the Numbers
124 years of preservation history
160 +
The number of historic properties that have
been saved by Preservation Virginia. They span
21 counties and 9 independent cities.
40
The number of historic properties owned and
operated as museums by Preservation Virginia
since 1889.
75
The number of historic sites added to
Preservation Virginia’s Annual Endangered
Sites Listing since 2005.
19
The number of historic sites that have benefited
from Preservation Virginia’s Revolving Fund.
The fund facilitates the resale of properties to
people who have agreed to restore the property
within specific guidelines.
Look for “By the Numbers” in future issues.
7
Preservation virginia
o you remember the first time a historic place grabbed you? Or, how
about that moment when you realized you were not simply looking at
something beautiful, but that history surrounded you making you part
of something bigger than yourself?
I do—very clearly. When I was eight years old, my grandmother took
me to Historic Jamestowne. I had visited for church services in the past. This
time, we stood on the banks of the James River. She told me the story of the
first permanent English settlement, the hardships and
the triumphs. I felt my Virginia roots take hold. I felt
the power in this site and realized that historic places
have a power to inspire each generation in new ways.
The second memory considers aesthetics.
With Thalhimers and Miller & Rhoads calling, my
family traveled to Richmond by way of Rt. 60 four
or five times a year. Sleeping in the back seat, I would
awaken to the smell of tobacco just in time to gaze
out the window at the assortment of nineteenth
century Church Hill brick houses and Shockoe
Bottom warehouses. I was fascinated by the juxtapoElizabeth S. Kostelny
Executive Director
sition of the neighborhood and industrial buildings—
so different from our 1960’s Newport News neighborhood. I couldn’t imagine the vibrant arts, food, and cultural offerings that
now characterize this area of Richmond.
Historic places matter­­—is the thread that runs through all of our efforts
at Preservation Virginia. People are
passionate about ensuring that the
Commonwealth’s dynamic fabric
reflects our past and our future. Our
view of these places adapts to the
needs of our time. In the 1960s no
one would have considered rehabilitating a warehouse for condos or
office space. By doing so, there is
continuity in the neighborhood and
reusing these and other spaces puts
dollars in the economy and less
debris in the landfill.
Whether it is the quiet reverNational Preservation Month MAY 2013
ence found on a Civil War battlefield, the bustle of activity on
Here are 4 ways you can get
Berryville’s Main Street, or the
the preservation spirit:
elegant proportions of a Colonial
• Attend a live performance or a
home, these historic places ground
movie at a historic theater.
us, motivate us, and refresh us to
take on the challenges we face in
• Visit and shop in one of
today’s world.
Virginia’s historic downtowns.
May is historic preservation
• Show your kids the building
month. Ventures shows how the
where you went to school,
power of these historic places is
where your parents went
providing impact in their communito school, or where you got
ties to bolster local economies,
married.
provide educational opportunities,
• Email us at info@preservationand enrich our quality of life. We
virginia.org and we’ll help get
hope that these stories will inspire
you connected.
you to explore how you connect
to Virginia’s many historic places.
SEE!
SAVE!
CELEBRATE!
Preservation Virginia
204 W. Franklin Street
Richmond, Virginia 23220-5012
www.preservationvirginia.org
804.648.1889
Non-Profit Organization
U.S. Postage
PAID
Richmond, Virginia
Permit No. 1819
historic
VENTURES
NAMED TO THE 2012 ENDANGERED SITES LIST
Ashland Theater, 1940