 |
|
SIA Industrial Heritage Preservation Grants Awarded - Posted 06/24/2005
|
|
The SIA Grants Committee is pleased to announce the award of three more Industrial Heritage Preservation Grants. At the October board meeting, the committee recommended and the SIA board approved a $1,067.50 grant to the Mid-Continent Railway Historical Society, Inc. At its February meeting, the board approved grants of $2,500 to the Heritage Conservation Network/Francis Mill Preservation Society and $3,000 to the Western Reserve Historical Society. Mid-Continent Railway Historical Society requested funding to conduct photo documentation of the 1905 Great Northern Business Car A-22, built in the railroad's St. Paul shops for Louis Hill. The documentation will become part of the society's archival record and will be used in the formulation of restoration and interpretation plans for the car. Francis Mill Preservation Society (FMPS) is working with the Heritage Conservation Network (a non-profit group that runs hands-on workshops) to restore a c. 1887 water-powered gristmill in Waynesville, NC. The mill was in danger of collapse in 2003 when emergency stabilization of the structure took place. Through a series of workshops, the society will not only restore the mill but also teach volunteers about historic construction techniques. FMPS plans to restore the mill and its original equipment to working order and provide access to students and the general public for educational purposes. Western Reserve Historical Society (Cleveland, OH) will use the giant to help match a challenge grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to catalog and preserve the records of the LTV Steel Corporation and its predecessors. The records span a 150-year history that ended in 2002 with the company's closing. Once the material is processed, it will be distributed to repositories appropriate for the collection's "geographic scope," which included steel mills, mines, and shipping facilities throughout much of the Midwest and portions of the Atlantic coast. The collection consists of 3,800 cubic ft. of documents, audio and videotapes and photographs. Upon completion, anticipated to be in 2006, a catalog of the collection will be posted on the Internet. Recipients of the SIA Industrial Heritage Preservation Grants are required to provide SIA with auditable accounts of the money expended, two copies of products generated from the funded project, and a written report for the SIAN or journal. The SIA grants support the research, documentation, and presentation of industrial sites and practices. Grant guidelines are available online here at the SIA web site. Interested parties are encouraged to contact a member of the SIA Grants Committee for further information: Lynn Rakos (lrakos@hotmail.com, 917-790-8629); and Nancy Hatchel (440-951-6069). |