Participants experienced an American Tradition on the Maid of the Mist.

Whether it was the stunning rainbows at Niagara Falls State Park, the hydro-power created by the force of nature, or stepping back in time at Old Fort Niagara, all were impressed by the partnerships that are growing in Niagara Falls National Heritage Area during the Fall Meeting of the ANHA in October. 

 

The meetings began at Niagara University with the NPS Northeast Regional workshop focused on organizational sustainability issues, resource development and collaboration. One of the key participants in the workshop represented the Nonprofit Center at LaSalle University with whom the Northeast Region has an arrangement to assist NHAs and other partner nonprofits to provide guidance on board development and financial sustainability issues. 

During the field day, Sara Capen shared Niagara's stellar junior ranger book for the NHA that shares the stories of the international crossings of Harriet Tubman and others on the Underground Railroad, the dare devils that challenged the Falls, and those that defended their hometowns during the War of 1812.  Participants were introduced to the interpretive themes, programs, and projects of the NFNHA at the Niagara Falls State Park, Maid of the Mist, Schoellkopf Power Plant, Oakwood Cemetery, Niagara Arts and Cultural Center, Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Interpretive Center, Niagara Gorge Trail, NYPA's Power Vista, Village of Youngstown, Lewiston, and Old Fort Niagara. 

 

Meetings continued with a ANHA Strategic Planning Session and business meeting, and a ride on the Niagara Jet Boat Adventures. 

NHA Collaborative Model Highlighted 

 

Interior Secretary Jewell presented the Keynote address at the National Workshop on Large Landscape Conservation in Washington, DC October 23-24. Sec. Jewell  shared her strategic vision into how managing at the landscape scale offers solutions to the significant conservation challenges and opportunities of the 21st century.

 

NPS and NHA staff played an active role in planning the event, delivering presentations and facilitating round table discussions with nearly 600 participants. Steve Guertin, Deputy Director for Policy at the US Fish and Wildlife Service, recognized the two anniversary milestones - 30 years the for National Heritage Area program and 20 for the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative. He offered both his "congratulations and sincere thanks to those leaders who have shown us that it is possible to make the visions that inspire our work a reality on the ground."

 The NPS Scaling Up team developed a new publication highlighting 20 NPS case studies that promote large landscape conservation. The case studies are intended to help tell the narrative of our large landscape conservation work. The examples stretch geographically and range from heritage corridor projects to large scale initiatives. Read: largelandscapenetwork.org

 

 "Large landscape conservation initiatives are actually working to provide solutions for some of our nation's most complex environmental challenges, while at the same time enhancing economic prosperity and energy security," said James Levitt, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy fellow and NWLLC co-chair.

NPS staff at National Workshop on Large Landscape Conservation by Jim Boyd (NPS Distance Learning Center)

On Oct. 11, 2014 more than 600 people joined  NPS Director Jonathan Jarvis, U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, and Louisiana Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne, unveil dedication plaque.

Atchafalaya National Heritage Area (ANHA) in southern Louisiana provides a glimpse of the influence of Poverty Point, a massive earthworks site built by American Indians more than 3,000 years ago. Named after a plantation built long after the original inhabitants were gone, Poverty Point's extraordinary earthen ridges and mounds are the most visible remnants of a settlement that was a major residential, ceremonial and trading center.

The people of Poverty Point traveled hundreds of miles to acquire materials. They used a transportation network of rivers and other waterways through the ANHA to reach the Gulf. Twenty-three archaeological sites within the ANHA contain artifacts associated with Poverty Point, like cooking balls which, when molded and fired, retained heat and reduced the amount of wood needed to cook a meal in a shallow, in-ground oven.

 

The City of Greeley Art Commission and the Poudre Heritage Alliance are proud to announce the recent addition to the "Go West" Art Fence at Centennial Village in Greeley, CO, by Artist Lisa Cameron Russell. Other art panels depicted the impact water had on Greeley's rich agricultural history. The new panels continue the story and give viewers a glimpse of the "working Cache," a river essential to the lives of the half-million people living along the Northern Colorado Front Range. 

 

Poudre Heritage Alliance is pleased to introduce Laine Dennison, as our new Administrative Assistant - Programs. Laine previously worked at the University of Colorado Boulder. She brings expertise in marketing, customer relations and organizational skills.

U.S. Rep. John Barrow joined Augusta Canal  NHA officials to cut the ribbon the area's newest multi-use recreation trail October 6.

This facility is a crown jewel for our region," said U.S. Rep.  Barrow. "It's interesting to reflect that a river used to bring people together when a river was the highway. Then we invented rivers of concrete and steel, and all of the sudden God's original highways became a barrier. Now, as people from all over visit this trail, the canal will again be a place where folks come together."

 

River Levee Trail is only the most recent recreational improvement in the Augusta Canal NHA. The heritage area also added two permanent trailside restrooms, a quarter-mile walking trail leading to a canoe launch dock, and a comprehensive trail signage system, all installed within the past year.

Freedom's Frontier National Heritage Area received an Award of Merit from the American Association of State and Local History (AASLH) for the project, #QR1863: A Twitter Reenactment of Quantrill's Raid. The project was also selected among the top 5% of Award of Merit winners for the History in Progress award.

 

Julie McPike, Freedom's Frontier; Christine Metz Howard, University of Kansas; and Abby Magariel, Watkins Museum, presented a session at the AASLH conference on the project.

 

Freedom's Frontier and its partners produced a Twitter-based reenactment of Quantrill's Raid on Lawrence to commemorate the sesquicentennial. They adopted personas of those involved in the raid and tweeted as though it were happening in real time. "Reentweeters" began tweeting as their characters in summer 2013, but the bulk of the action occurred the morning of  Aug. 21, the day 150 years earlier that William Quantrill and 400 of his men rode into Lawrence murdering and burning. The hashtag #QR1863 trended worldwide the day of the reenactment with over one million Twitter users seeing or using the hashtag a total of five million times. The reenactment garnered national press and has won two state awards and three national awards.

Essex National Heritage Area launched a new partnership with the NPS at Salem Maritime National Historic Site to provide additional services to Park visitors through a new Visitor Information Desk in the NPS Visitor Center.

 

"The Visitor Center in Salem sees over 375,000 visitors a year and is one of the most visited in the region," says Annie Harris, Essex Heritage CEO. "The new Visitor Information Desk for the entire Essex National Heritage Area will create new pathways for these visitors to connect with the incredible resources available to them throughout Essex County and, more importantly, provide an engaged audience for our regional heritage tourism partners."

 

Mayor Driscoll noted that "Tourism is an important part of the City's economy, and the Salem Visitor Center is a focal point and starting place for over half a million visitors who come to Salem annually. I welcome Essex Heritage's new role in the visitor center to provide important services in this region -- promoting the numerous historic, cultural and natural resources around the North Shore and encouraging visitors to stay longer and explore more."

 

To meet increased demand for services, Essex Heritage welcomed three new staff members: Robyn Giannopolo, Development Assistant; Kathryn Rutkowski, Visitor Center Manager, and Ryan McMahon, Visitor Center Assistant, both formerly of NPS.

Rep. Paul Tonko and a staff from Sen. Gillibrand's office joined leaders from NPS, Erie Canalway NHC, NYS Canal Corporation, and NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation on October 22 at the eastern gateway to the Erie Canal in Waterford to announce the designation.

It's official! The New York State Barge Canal is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The designation recognizes the New York State Canal System as a nationally significant work of early 20th century engineering and construction that affected transportation and maritime commerce for nearly half a century, and continues in operation today linking the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. 

 

NY State Barge Canal National Register Historic District is remarkable in its scope and historical integrity, spanning 450 miles, 552 contributing structures and buildings, and includes the four branches: Erie, Champlain, Oswego, and Cayuga-Seneca canals, all enlarged versions of waterways, in continuous operation since 1825. 

 

"This recognition from the highest levels of our nation reminds us once again of the essential role New York State and its waterways have played in our country's development and prominence," shared Mike Caldwell, regional director for the NPS's Northeast Region. "On behalf of the National Park Service, I am honored to recognize the NY State Barge Canal's listing on the National Register of Historic Places as a nationally significant, historic transportation icon."

 

The nomination was prepared by the Erie Canalway NHC, NPS Documentation Program, and NYS Canal Corporation, in partnership with NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation 

 

"The listing is yet another Erie Canalway milestone achieved thanks to the diligent efforts of our staff and partners," said Bob Radliff, director of the Erie Canalway NHC. "This recognition greatly enhances our ability to achieve our goals of promoting the Corridor as a world-class destination and fostering vibrant communities connected by our waterways."

 

In early October, Blue Ridge National Heritage Area Partnership had a strong presence at the annual International Bluegrass Music Association Festival and Awards Ceremony in downtown Raleigh, NC. Several Western North Carolinians were major award winners, showing the substantial impact and importance of traditional music to the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area region.

• Balsam Range, Best Vocal Group of the Year
• Buddy Melton, Male Vocalist of the Year
• Tim Surrett, Momentum Award for Mentor of the Year
• Bryan Sutton, Guitar Player of the Year. 

 

Interior rehabilitation of the historic Tarbell House is under way by the Oil City based firm of Gustafson General Contracting. In addition to finishing and repairing floors, walls and ceilings throughout the building, the construction team will also insulate the structure.

 

While this work is underway, 15 students at the University of Pittsburgh's Titusville campus, enrolled in a Community Service Seminar, are researching and designing exhibits to be installed into new Queen Anne style lighted glass display cabinets for the parlor, dining room, and entry hall of the Tarbell House.  An open house in January will showcase the project and restored building.

 

More Erie to Pittsburgh Trail Signage Installed

 

This autumn additional blue/green/white logo signs for the Erie to Pittsburgh Trail were installed within Oil Creek State Park and the City of Oil City. The signs highlight the multiple subparts of the Oil City Trail segment of the trail on both sides of the Allegheny River.

Funding for the signs was provided by a $4,000 Pa. Trails Mini-Grant from the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy. Oil Region Alliance matched that with $4,000 of federal NPS funds.