Chester County Parks and Recreation Department recognizes Kennett Township Historical Commission in atlas project effort
By PJ D’Annunzio, Staff Writer, KennettTimes.com
The Kennett Township Historical Commission accepts recognition by the county.
KENNETT—Karen Marshall, the Heritage Preservation Coordinator for Chester County’s Parks and Recreation Department , gave special recognition to Kennett Township’s Historical Commission for their efforts in aiding the county in their atlas project during a recent Board of Supervisor’s meeting.
“I can’t begin to tell you what a daunting task this is…for this reason I’ve invited the historical commission to come forward to accept the county’s appreciation tonight,” she said. “From 1979 to 1982 there was a survey of all the historic recourses in Chester County. In 2004 my predecessor decided that with the new growth of GIS technology she would resurvey all of the historic resourses in Chester County, and a GIS database was developed,”
The Historic Atlas Project’s primary goal is to build upon the 1979-1982 comprehensive survey of historic resources in Chester County that has since become outdated. Trained volunteers catalog current historic sites, districts, and structures in Chester County’s 73 municipalities, and utilize state-of-the-art technology to do so. Since 2000, preservation planning at the municipal level in Pennsylvania has been desired. To efficiently and effectively identify resources that need protection, Chester County’s Historic Preservation Officer enlisted the efforts of the Chester County Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Analyst to assist in creating the series of atlases to meet this need.
Chester County Heritage Cooridinator Karen Marshall details the atlas as it currently stands. Kennett Township is among the first 30 townships to be completed
Kennett Township is among the first 30 municipalities to be completed in the new survey.
“We documented and identified every single historic resource in this county,” Marshall said. “This is called a windshield survey. What this does is it provides a planning record of where our recourses exist. It does not in anyway directly affect the property owner or the status of the building other than to be listed by the county as a Chester County Historic Resource.”
The classifications for the historical locations consist of: being eligible for the national register, recourses that are local or municipal importance, and/or properties that are 50 years or older.
Commission worked with the county to help compile information by way of organizing catalogs of historical sites and working with county officials to designate prospective sites within the guidelines of the historical preservation initiative
“You all, thanks to the commission, have this record,” Marshall said, “I want to make a special point of thanking Dorthea Morris, who is no longer with us, she served tirelessly to identify historical resources, and was responsible for that early survey.”
The honorees were presented with a certificate commemorating their efforts in furthering the atlas project which, once complete, will encompass the entire county’s historical assets.
