Introduction: The Place of Folklore in Historic Preservation

• Published in: The Journal of American folklore 2019-10, Vol.132 (526), p.355-358
• Main Author: Sommers, Laurie Kay
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anthropology; Bibliographic literature; Colloquial language; Conversation; Cultural heritage; Culture; Ethnic Studies; Field study; Fieldwork; Folk literature; Folklore; Historic preservation; Literary devices; National parks; Polls & surveys; Protection and preservation; Public sector; Vernacular architecture; Websites; Working groups
• ISSN: 0021-8715; 1535-1882
• DOI: 10.5406/jamerfolk.132.526.0355

The AFC shaped the role of folklore in the national conversation, with projects such as the Grouse Creek Cultural Survey: Integrating Folklife and Historic Preservation Field Research (Carter and Fleischhauer 1988), the first attempt to combine architectural and folklife surveys into a single project; and Mary Hufford's integrative approach to cultural conservation and place in One Space, Many Places: Folklife and Land Use in New Jersey's Pinelands National Reserve (1986). More recent publications in historic preservation underscore the need for folklorists in preservation policy development. in his book Place, Race, and Story, Ned Kaufman focuses on "storyscapes" and calls on folklorists to help craft standards and methodologies "that capture the power of stories" in what he calls "heritage conservation" (2009:5). Collectively, the authors represent a continuum in the intersection of historic preservation and folklore: from Kingston Heath-dean of the humanist perspective-whose approach is shaped by American Studies and an interest in vernacular architecture; to Molly Garfinkel, a historian who works with the folklorists at City Lore-New York City's center for urban folk culture; to David Rotenstein, a folklorist, now transitioning to activist public historian, who spent most of his career working in cultural resources management; to Tina Bucuvalas, a public folklorist who, as Florida's State Folklorist, was housed in the State Bureau of Historic Preservation; to my own experience as a public folklorist with a background in historic preservation. In "The Tarpon Springs Greektown Traditional Cultural District: The National Register Nomination and the Battle of the Sponge Docks" Tina Bucuvalas offers her insider's perspective on the successful listing of this important ethnic enclave in Tarpon Springs, Florida, to the National Register of Historic Places using National Register Bulletin No. 38: