In this issue: 
-Effingham County Courthouse Ribbon Cutting and Re-Opening -A Voyage to Queen Anne's Revenge -Georgia Rocks the Recent Past! -Crawford Depot Renovation Project Update -The National Register of Historic Places in Georgia, Part Two -Staff Profiles: Candy Henderson 
Effingham County Courthouse Ribbon Cutting and ReOpening 
By Betsy Shirk, Environmental Review Coordinator 
 
 The Effingham County Courthouse originally opened in 1909. 
I had the privilege to represent the Historic Preservation Division (HPD) at the grand re-opening of the Historic Effingham County Courthouse on Saturday, November 6, in Springfield. I provided a historical perspective of the National Register-listed building and spoke about the importance of preserving and rehabilitating structures such as these for future generations. This historic courthouse will have a new life in public service and will house county offices. 
As noted in the context prepared by our office, Preserving Georgia's Historic Courthouses, Georgia has one of the nation's greatest collections of county courthouses  second in number only to Texas. Many of these community landmark buildings are endangered, yet they are important to our state's economic and cultural life. Courthouses are often the most prominent building in a city or town. They hold community memories not only in the records they may 
 
 contain, but also in the collected memory of the thousands of small and large transactions, meetings, and activities that have occurred in them. Rehabilitating a county courthouse may seem a formidable undertaking; however, with proper planning and adequate funding it can be a rewarding experience that produces a revitalized and functional building. 
This landmark community building opened in 1909. Hyman Witcover, a leading architect of the time from Savannah, designed it. Mr. Witcover's project list includes the Bull Street Library, Savannah City Hall, Scottish Rite Temple, and the Kehoe House of Savannah. He was born in 1871 in South Carolina, studied under Alfred Eichberg, and in 1900 started his own firm in Savannah. He served as the first president of the Savannah Society of Architects and was later appointed to the State Board of Examiners for Architects. By 1923 Mr. Witcover was elected Secretary General of the Supreme Council and began designing Masonic temples all over the United States. The Courthouse has been described by Wilbur Caldwell, author of The Courthouse and The Depot: A Narrative Guide to Railroad Expansion and Its Impact on Public Architecture in Georgia, 1833-1910, as "Hyman Witcover's grand neoclassical palace of justice." 
The cornerstone was laid on February 22, 1908. The date was chosen because it is the birth date of George Washington, who traveled through Effingham County and was a Worshipful Master of the Free Masonic lodge. The ladies of the town brought a picnic lunch, and it was quite a grand affair with a marching band. The Brinson Railroad sold a round trip ticket from Savannah for half price. The cornerstone was opened earlier this year and the articles found inside are on display at the Courthouse. 
The Courthouse was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Listing in the National Register provides formal recognition of a property's historical, architectural, or archaeological significance based on national standards. It is the official inventory of the nation's properties that are worthy of preservation. Two additions have taken place since the original structure was completed, one in 1933 to add restrooms, ladies' waiting area, as well as one office upstairs. During the addition, 
 
 the marble flooring was replaced with terrazzo in the main corridors. The second addition was completed in 1979 to create additional office space at the rear of the structure for an elevator, offices, and records rooms. The current structure encompasses some 14,527 square feet. 
The rehabilitation project began in April 2008 and was completed in November 2010. The work, which was done by JT Turner Construction, Greenline Architecture, and Hussey, Gay, Bell, and DeYoung, cost $3.5 million. The county funded the project with the Special Purpose local option sales tax. This funding is the path through which most municipalities can raise the extra money needed to complete rehabilitation projects. State law gives local municipalities the authority to use this money for capital improvements to the county courthouse. 
The rehabilitation work itself followed closely the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Treatment of Historic Properties, which are the guiding principles that express a national preservation philosophy resulting from the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. They provide a foundation for a uniform and sensitive approach to rehabilitating historic properties. Our office offered technical assistance and comments on following the Standards for portions of the project when requested by the county. In fact, coordination with our National Register program led to this review as the county wanted to make sure that the work would not compromise the integrity of this National Register-listed building. The county was fortunate enough to have the original blueprints for the 1909 construction and using these proved invaluable to staying true to the original construction. The courtroom, which is a grand ceremonial space, was returned to its original appearance right down to the floating jury platform. Following the Standards, different species of wood correctly distinguish original and recreated items. When possible original materials were reused. 
Rehabilitation benefits the local community as it continues the use of a landmark public building. Activity generated by the courthouse in its central location contributes to the stability of the downtown business district and promotes an awareness and appreciation of local historic resources. This exemplary project evidences Effingham County's stewardship of its historic courthouse. Great attention was paid to retaining the historic character and its significance. It is an excellent example of rehabilitation that provided adequate funding and included preservation in planning. Preserving and rehabilitating structures such as these for future generations is truly using historic places for a better Georgia! 
 
 Note: Photos and information regarding the courthouse were provided by Adam Kobek, Project Manager, Effingham County Board of Commissioners. 
A Voyage to Queen Anne's Revenge 
By Christopher McCabe and Stephen Dilk, Georgia Coastal Underwater Archaeology Field Station 
Onsite at North Carolina's Queen Anne's Revenge Shipwreck Project. Inset: Edward Teach, aka the pirate Blackbeard. 
Recently, officials from North Carolina invited HPD underwater archaeologists Chris McCabe and Steve Dilk to participate in dive operations at the Queen Anne's Revenge (QAR) shipwreck site in Beaufort Inlet, NC. The wreck is believed to be the former flagship of Edward Teach, more commonly known as the infamous English pirate Blackbeard. The site lies approximately a half mile off of Fort Macon State Park in 30 feet of often near zero-visibility seawater. Offshore surges and strong currents passing through the inlet also add to the challenges of working at the 
 
 site. 
Discovered in November 1996, this unique archaeological project is now internationally recognized for its contributions to the understanding of early eighteenth century life aboard a pirating vessel during the age of sail. Before being taken as a prize and renamed by Teach in 1717, the QAR was the French slaver La Concorde. Under Blackbeard's leadership the QAR's crew pirated throughout the Caribbean and along the eastern shores of colonial America. In 1718, Teach grounded and lost his flagship while attempting to cross the bar of Beaufort Inlet. 
Archaeologists continue to carefully map the wreck site and recover important historic artifacts. Since 1997, tens of thousands of items have been recovered and painstakingly conserved, including cannon, navigational instruments, galley-ware, ship's structural components, rigging, surgeon's tools, and the personal effects of the crew. Many of these artifacts are now on display at the North Carolina Maritime Museum at Beaufort. During HPD's visit, divers excavated three test units and recovered over forty objects. 
Assisting with this important project, even for a brief period, has proved beneficial in numerous ways for Georgia's own underwater archaeology program. The role of visiting scientists allowed for improved skills in mapping, excavation, and artifact recovery in a challenging underwater environment. There were opportunities to share professional insights as well as obtain an insider's view of how a very successful underwater archaeology program operates on a daily basis. These efforts have also helped foster lasting relationships between our two state programs. The authors would like to thank North Carolina's Underwater Archaeology Branch and especially QAR Project Archaeologist Chris Southerly. 
Images courtesy of North Carolina's QAR Project. 
Georgia Rocks the Recent Past! 
 
 By Gretchen Brock, National Register & Survey Program Manager 
Did you know that Georgia is a national leader in listing properties that are less than 50 years old in the National Register of Historic Places? Georgia has listed nearly 10% of the country's "recent past" National Register listings in the last two years. During that time, 68 nominations were listed in the National Register meeting Criteria Consideration G.* Six of these are from Georgia. A great achievement! 
Ordinarily, a property must be 50 years old or older to qualify for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. There is an exception, however, if an individual historic property or a majority of historic properties in a district can be proven to be of exceptional significance; this is known in National Register terminology as "meeting Criteria Consideration G." The "recent past" is a term generally used for historic and architectural resources less than 50 years old. 
Criteria Consideration G is nothing new; it has been around since the establishment of the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1966. What is new is the growing understanding, appreciation, research, and identification of recent past properties as places worthy of preservation. In many cases, recent past properties are some of our most endangered historic places. 
Nominations for recent past properties are nothing new in Georgia either. In the 1990s, HPD listed a number of Lustron houses in Georgia that were less than 50 years old at the time. In 2002, the International Style 1958 Douglas County Courthouse was listed, and in 2004, the nomination for the Augusta Downtown Historic District included resources from 1736 through 1967 in recognition of Augusta's exceptional collection of mid-20th-century historic buildings. The past two years have brought Georgia's first individually listed Contemporary-style Ranch House, the 1952 Joe and Mary Jane League House, and a rising number of nominations for historic places less than 50 years old. 
 
 In 2009, Fairway Oaks-Greenview Historic District became Georgia's first mid-20th-century residential neighborhood listed in the NRHP. The neighborhood is significant as a precedentsetting mid-20th-century suburban residential development in Savannah and for its excellent collection of houses constructed between 1950 and 1965. 
Listed in the NRHP in June 2009, Collier Heights Historic District in Atlanta is exceptionally significant to the history of Atlanta, Georgia, and the country as a mid-20th-century suburb created for and by African Americans. Collier Heights' 
preeminence derives from its unique combination of sheer size, the number and range of its singlefamily houses, the quality of its planning, design, construction, and landscaping, its association with an emerging middle and upper-middle class of African-American homebuyers for whom it was built, and the prominent role played by African Americans in all aspects of its development during a time of strict housing segregation in the South and nationally. Development and architecture in the district date from circa 1915 through 1979. 
Two large historic districts that represent changes in the economy, industry, architecture, and social history in the metro-Atlanta area from the late 19th century through the late 1960s were 
 
 also listed in the NRHP in 2009. Kirkwood Historic District in Atlanta, DeKalb County, is exceptionally significant because its historic properties dating from circa 1870 through 1967 reflect changes experienced by a middle-class Atlanta neighborhood impacted by economic and political forces such as transportation improvements, urban consolidation, and the Civil Rights Movement. Hapeville Historic District in Hapeville, Fulton County, is exceptionally significant for the role changing transportation modes played on the development of the community: from a rural 1870s hamlet evolving into a mid-20th-century metropolitan suburb defined by two interstates and an international airport by 1967. Hapeville is also significant for its distinctive 1974 Hapeville Branch of the Atlanta Fulton Public Library designed by the prominent Atlanta architectural firm of Stevens and Wilkinson. 
In 2008, two properties in Georgia were listed in the NRHP as exceptionally significant in art and architecture: the Memorial to the Six Million, designed by Atlanta-architect Benjamin Hirsch and built in 1968 as a memorial in Atlanta to the murdered Jews of the Holocaust; and Pasaquan in Marion County, the visionary art environment created by Eddie Owens Martin between 1957 to 1986. 
HPD's over-a-decade-long and on-going initiative to identify, evaluate, and encourage the preservation of Georgia's mid-20th-century properties also has produced a number of publications and presentations on the American Small House, Ranch Houses in Georgia, Modern apartment complexes, and Split-Level Houses. HPD has partnered with Georgia State University's Heritage Preservation Program graduate students on case studies of mid-20thcentury residential development in the city of Atlanta (2001) and DeKalb County (2010). In 2010, a partnership between HPD, Georgia Transmission Corporation, the Georgia Department of Transportation, and New South Associates produced The Ranch House in Georgia: Guidelines for Evaluation, one of the first publications in the nation to provide statewide guidelines for evaluating Post World War II housing. 
What's next for Georgia's recent past in 2011? Nominations are "in the works" for Howard 
 
 Finster's Paradise Gardens in Chattooga County and Ranch Houses in Macon. 
*source: NPS National Register workshop, Austin, TX 
-If you are a property owner, neighborhood, or community interested in nominating recent past properties, please send preliminary information (guidelines are on our website) to HPD, Attn: Gretchen Brock, National Register & Survey Program Manager. -For more information about evaluating properties less than 50 years old for the National Register, please see the National Register Bulletin #22. -Publications including The Ranch House in Georgia, presentations, National Register nominations, and case studies are available on HPD's website. -For more information about The Memorial to the Six Million, please see the April 2010 issue of Preservation Posts. For more information about Kirkwood Historic District, please see the December 2009 issue of Preservation Posts. -Interested in Georgia's Modern buildings? Find out more at the Georgia Chapter of DOCOMOMO. 
Crawford Depot Renovation Project Update 
By Dean Baker, Transportation Enhancements Reviewer 
 
 The granite Crawford Depot was built circa 1848. 
The Crawford Depot, built circa 1848 to serve the Oglethorpe County seat of Lexington and originally known as Lexington Station, is currently undergoing renovation. This project will make the interior spaces a community cornerstone well into the future. The current phase of the project includes replacement of plumbing, electrical and HVAC systems, cleaning and repointing the granite block, a new roof as well as important structural improvements to the roof truss system and community (formerly the freight) room floor. 
The depot was constructed with granite block, likely including a few granite cross ties that were used along the rail line before the advent of heavy steam engines required their replacement with more flexible wooden cross ties. Depots constructed entirely from stone are extremely rare 
 
 in Georgia. Most depots are constructed from wood or brick with only a few built with the exterior walls entirely constructed from granite block. The depot, built to serve the Athens branch of the Georgia Railroad, also served the towns of Arnoldsville, Dunlop, Maxeys, Union Point, and Woodville. The depot also served as a shipment and supply facility for the Confederate Army during the Civil War. The Crawford Depot was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in January 1977. 
Cary Fordyce, President and Economic Development Director for the Oglethorpe County Chamber of Commerce (the organization that has overseen the depot's rehabilitation), had this to say about the discoveries that had been made in relation to the history of the depot during the renovation process: 
"As is probably the case with any building as old as the Depot, there were surprises in store for the Chamber of Commerce and contractor, Bona Fide, LLC. Under the flooring we found a number of Southern Express Co. tickets for passengers & freight, dated 1917. One interior wall, not originally scheduled for demolition, revealed barn board hidden under modern paneling. The new wall will utilize the salvaged barn board as an unexpected addition to interior granite surface in our community room. You never know what a restoration project will have in store for you." 
There is additional work planned for the 160 year old granite building. According to Mr. Fordyce, "After three years of planning and approvals, Phase I of the Crawford Depot Rehabilitation should wrap up by year end." 
Photos courtesy of Richard Hamm, Athens Banner-Herald. 
-Additional Images of the project during construction can be seen at http://betterstreets.blogspot. com/2010/10/crawford-depot.html. -An image of the depot before renovation can be found at www.railga.com/Depots/crawford.html. -Visit HPD's website for more information about our role in Transportation Enhancement Projects. 
 
 The National Register of Historic Places in Georgia 
By Gretchen Brock, National Register & Survey Program Manager 
Part 2: Application Forms 
This is the second in a series of articles about the National Register process in Georgia. Part one appeared in the November 2010 edition of Preservation Posts. 
Last month I wrote about the importance of finding out the process for submitting proposed National Register nominations to your state historic preservation office (SHPO). In Georgia, we encourage property owners and/or sponsors to send in preliminary information before completing the application forms. If the historic property appears to be eligible for listing in the National Register, our staff will send a letter encouraging you to complete either a Historic Property Information Form (HPIF) or a Historic District Information Form (HDIF); both are available on HPD's website. 
What is a Historic Property Information Form (HPIF) or Historic District Information Form (HDIF)? A HPIF is used to document an individual building, site, structure, or object (ex: a house, church, depot, school, cemetery, bridge, monument, etc.). It can also be used to document a small complex of related historic properties (ex: church and cemetery; house and garden; courthouse 
 
 and jail; farmhouse and outbuildings). 
A HDIF is used to document a historic district or number of related historic properties (ex. residential neighborhood; downtown commercial area; entire city; college campuses; large farms with outbuildings, tenant houses, and agricultural fields). 
The HPIF/HDIF provides a step-by-step outline and guidance for the information needed to document a property to HPD and National Register standards. The forms explain what is needed for written documentation (the description, history, and significance sections) and what is needed for supporting documentation (photographs, maps, floor plans, site plans, photocopies of historical research). The forms also identify property owners and/or sponsors of the nomination. 
Who can complete a HPIF/HDIF? The forms were developed by HPD's National Register staff to allow for successful nominations by people who may not have a background in history, preservation, or architecture. Experience has shown that a careful reading and following of directions in the HPIF/HDIF will provide excellent results. 
Anyone can complete a HPIF/HDIF with consent from the property owner(s). In Georgia, a majority of proposed nominations are written by the property owner or a sponsoring organization. Sponsors may be a local historical society, neighborhood association, volunteer, historic preservation commission, or other interested party. A professional consultant can be hired to prepare your nomination also. HPD's website has a directory of preservation consultants. 
How does a HPIF/HDIF relate to a National Register Registration Form? 
 
 The National Register Registration Form is the official form completed and sent to the Keeper of the National Register in Washington, DC along with archival photographs and maps required for all nominations. The form and its instructions (National Register Bulletin: How to Complete the National Register Registration Form) are available on the National Park Service (NPS) National Register website. 
In Georgia, HPD recommends that proposed nominations be submitted to our office on the HPIF/ HDIF. The information called for in the HPIF/HDIF is required to document and support a National Register nomination and is based on NPS National Register form and instructions. The information is just presented in a different format that is easier to prepare and more useful for HPD review. 
For properties that meet the National Register Criteria, HPD's National Register staff will prepare the final, official National Register Registration Form, archival photographs, and final maps to submit to the Keeper of the National Register. HPD's staff uses information provided by the property owner(s) and/or sponsors as well as their professional knowledge and established terminology to produce professionally and technically correct nominations to the National Register. 
Nominations can, of course, be submitted to our office on the National Register Registration Form. However, Section 1 and supporting documentation requested in Section 5 of the HPIF/ HDIF must accompany the nomination form. HPD recommends using the HPIF/HDIF as a guide to insure all required information for state-level review and processing is included. 
Submitting a Proposed Nomination to HPD Please send via U.S. mail your completed HPIF/HDIF and required supporting documentation (including photographs, maps, CD/DVD, etc.) to the attention of: Gretchen Brock, National Register & Survey Program Manager. 
Please save resources and do not mail nomination materials in plastic page covers and/or binders of any kind. Please do not mount photographs on paper or send in plastic sleeves. Please keep packaging and formatting simple and recyclable. Any oversized maps may be neatly folded and included with the other material or, if necessary, sent separately in a mailing tube. 
 
 There is no cost or fee to submit a National Register nomination to HPD. Next month in Preservation Posts: Part 3: HPD's Review Process of Proposed Nominations -For questions or more information about the National Register process, please contact: Gretchen Brock, National Register & Survey Program Manager at 404.651.6782 or gretchen. brock@dnr.state.ga.us. Lynn Speno, National Register Specialist at 404.651.5911 or lynn.speno@dnr.state.ga.us. -The official National Register of Historic Places website is www.nps.gov/history/nr/index.htm. -The National Register of Historic Places has a series of publications and guidelines for evaluating, documenting, and listing different types of properties available at www.nps.gov/history/nr/publications/ index.htm. 
Staff Profiles 
Candy Henderson, Operations & Outreach Section Chief 
 
 Candy Henderson is HPD's Chief of Operations and Outreach and has been employed in state government since 1978. Prior to joining HPD in 2008, she was employed with DNR's Wildlife Resources Division for 25 years. Candy has a business management degree from North Georgia College and State University and a criminal justice degree from South Georgia College. 
Candy was born and raised in the Atlanta area. In her adult life she has lived in various other regions of the state such as Waycross, Rhine, and Cordele. She currently resides in Buford with her husband Eddie who is also employed with DNR as a Conservation Major in Wildlife Resources. 
What are your main duties at HPD? What do you do on a typical day? My typical day is far from routine. Every day brings a different issue or new challenge. Since becoming Chief of Operations and Outreach, I have enjoyed becoming more involved with our grants, communications and outreach, and African American programs. My primary 
 
 responsibility is overseeing the division's budget. Recent state budget cuts and revenue losses have made that responsibility very challenging. 
What do you like most about your job? The staff I supervise help to make my job enjoyable. All of them work in a professional manner and are great assets to our division. I also enjoy being a part of senior management and the decisions we make as a team to work toward and enhance the goals of our division. 
What do you like to do outside the office? Outside of work I enjoy gardening, hunting, camping, but my ultimate enjoyment is riding on my motorcycle. My husband and I plan to travel the western United States in the near future with our camper and motorcycles. 
 
Please send your comments or suggestions to charlie.miller@dnr.state.ga.us. 
 
like us on Facebook 
 
find us on Flickr 
 
Not a member? Subscribe now! 
Our mailing address is: Georgia Historic Preservation Division Department of Natural Resources 254 Washington Street, SW, Ground Level Atlanta, GA 30334 
Add us to your address book 
Copyright (C) 2010 Georgia Historic Preservation Division All rights reserved. 
Title image: Fairway Oaks-Greenview Historic District, Savannah (Chatham County)