Kweku Nyaawie, known as “Ku” to his friends, went to New Orleans with his brother in 2005 to help with post-Katrina reconstruction of flood-damaged homes. Kweku Nyaawie decided to stay. He found 616 Port Street and it became a labor of love. He did research, found period architectural pieces to replace what had been lost, and began a preservation project that would become a well-loved home.

In summer 2010, Kweku Nyaawie was the victim of a hit-and-run bicycle accident. With no insurance to help with the medical bills, Kweku Nyaawie found his work on 616 Port Street difficult. What’s more, he was having trouble standing. Then came a complaint of blight, a city hearing and a fine for a house in disrepair. Kweku Nyaawie’s neighbors could see him trying to continue his work on the house, sitting in an office chair while sanding the front of his house. He could not continue the project by himself, let alone face the 500 dollar-per-day fine.

Kweku Nyaawie’s friends, neighbors, and others are stepping in to help. The house’s transformation is impressive, though much work remains to be done. “Ku’s House” is a story of preservation  - and perseverance – that will not quickly be forgotten.

Learn more:

• Visit Ku’s House Facebook Page
• See the House Before Restoration
• Read the Story From a Caring Neighbor

Susie Trexler

The Renaissance castle Kronborg, where Shakespeare's Hamlet took place. Credit: Agency for Palaces & Cultural Properties, Jon Nordstroem.

Some little girls dream of living in a castle; Camilla Løntoft Nybye dreamed of conserving them, and her dream has now come true.

Camilla is a young and well-established conservation architect in Denmark who just received a remarkable acknowledgement of her talents. She has been named the Royal Building Inspector and will have the task and opportunity to work on several of Denmark’s royal palaces. Ms. Nybye is one of the youngest persons to be named to this post and one of few women.

Camilla has a degree from the Aarhus School of Architecture and a Masters of Science in Architectural Conservation from Edinburgh University. She is currently Associate Partner in the architectural firm of Rønnow Arkitekter A/S.

Camilla shows her brother, a journalist, the Gjirokastra she loves and shares her hopes for saving its historic architecture.

If your dream is to be able to work with building conservation professionals like Camilla, join a team of AiP volunteers at one of our projects! To meet Camilla in person, volunteer with AiP in Gjirokastra, Albania, where Camilla serves as consulting architect at the Skenduli house. She has donated many hours of her time assessing this remarkable stone tower house, and spent many more hours exploring the winding streets and paths of the historic town to gain a clear picture of the city and its architecture.

Streets in Timişoara are lined with tall apartments, heavily ornamented facades and colorful bricks. Those that have been restored are truly breathtaking. Photo: Maya Strasser

This post by Maya Strasser so perfectly captures a historic journey it’s worth sharing, plus I love the point about the buildings of Eastern Europe. In fact I did a double take at the photo of Streets in Timişoara because it looked so much like square in Zagreb, Croatia where I used to live, right down to the benches!

Recent history, however, is a sad story. The century-old “company houses” of Cape Breton have fallen into disrepair. In fact, they made the Heritage Canada Foundation’s 2010 list of the 10 most-endangered historic places in Canada. But help is on the way.

Adventures in Preservation is one of several important groups working together to save the houses. AiP is partnering with Cape Breton University, Nova Scotia Community College, the HomeMatch program, and community members in a project called Historic Housing for the Near Homeless.  Connections formed with schools and students have proved invaluable as collaboration continues; students who worked on previous AiP projects have stepped into leadership roles in this new one.  (See the Cairo, Illinois, project, “Creating Affordable Housing From Shotguns”.)

One of the houses benefiting from this new preservation project Photo: Tom Urbaniak

The house the AiP team will be working on is located in the Kolonia section of Whitney Pier, a multicultural community established in the early 1900s around the former Sydney steel plant. There homes were constructed from the dismantled Breton Hotel, which housed the workers who built the steel plant in 1899-1902. Preservation of the company houses is a nod to an important piece of Cape Breton’s history. This project will also provide affordable, durable, adaptive re-use homes for local families at risk of homelessness.

Take this exciting opportunity to join in the efforts! Learn more and join the project at our “upcoming adventures” page!

— Susie Trexler

A "folly" built in the 1700s remembers an era when castles were actually lived in. Blaise Castle, Bristol. Photo: Susie Trexler

England is a country steeped in history. You can hardly walk a hundred feet without running into something that is older than the United States. In Europe, this is average. To a Nevadan (a state since 1864), this is fascinating. On my flight home I was sitting next to a young man from Stockholm, Sweden, who confessed that his parents had just bought a summer house that was three hundred years old.

And that was normal. Adaptive re-use of historic structures seems to be a burgeoning trend in the United States, where buildings are for the first time phasing out of their original uses. In Europe, adaptive re-use is not a preservation choice, it’s a lifestyle.

A canal tow-path has become a walking and bike trail for locals and visitors. Near Bath, England. Photo: Susie Trexler

Reusing buildings that are already there is a given. They’ve served several different purposes since their construction; what’s adding another?

On my visit to Bradford-on-Avon, we ate at a tea house  – the Bridge Tea Rooms – that has been standing (impressively) since 1675. The building had the appearance of being duct-taped together with pieces of metal. When we stepped inside we were offered space upstairs. I was not only impressed that the second floor could sustain a group of five, I was giddy at the thought of being in a building that was 336 years old. If there is anything that old on the West Coast of the United States, I can assure you it’s off-limits. You can’t touch it, and you certainly can’t use it.

A 18th century statue commemorates the earlier Roman presence in Bath, England. Photo: Susie Trexler

The tea and scones at the Bridge were delicious, but I will always remember the building, itself. There is forever a debate in preservation, whether it is best to stop the historic clock to preserve its gears or keep it running… whether to let people walk on floors, touch things, use things. There is something to be said for continued use: these buildings were meant to be used, and it’s only through their use that you can fully appreciate them and the history they have witnessed. In a way these buildings have become windows, windows that let us leaf through the pages of history.

Author Susie Trexler is an ace intern at Adventures in Preservation.

On the one hand, being a strong believer in the importance of learning about history, I think bringing visitors to historic sites in any way, shape or form is a good thing, at least for sites with an education/outreach mandate. Geocachers are by nature explorers and learners, and how cool would it be to follow a trail of caches that traces Paul Revere’s ride or the route of slaves escaping on the Underground Railroad? (If these exist, please let me know!) A code of conduct among geocachers helps ensure sites are left as they are found, so impact would be minimal.

We followed a trail of caches placed along the historic Farmer’s Ditch in Boulder, Colorado, this summer and used it to explain about irrigation, water rights, and a host of subjects to our young cachers. A great experience for all.

However, I can easily see why resource managers would not want the general public crawling around delicate sites looking for the prize. Years ago, the USGS removed the “archeological site” labels from its topo maps in order to protect the sites, and GIS systems often hide that information from the public for the same reason. Geocaches are also not permitted on US National Parkland.

Have GPS, will travel: geocache crew in Bhutan

In Bhutan this spring, we found several geocaches, including one at a mani wall and one in a stupa,  i.e. sites that were not only historic but sacred as well. Our guide and driver were intrigued by the concept and joined our “treasure hunts” with great gusto. Nonetheless, I got a slight sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach the day we searched along the backside of a temple. It seemed wrong somehow to disturb something sacred. And that’s what got me thinking about this post.

Maybe the best thing is to encourage independent geocachers to share historic sites with the world but place their caches just outside the site or near interpretive panels. Earth Caches, where you prove you were on the spot with a photo or by answering a question rather than finding a physical cache, could be another option.

What do you think?

Don’t know what a geocache is? Learn about geocaching

Autumn color in Walla Walla, Washington Photo by Susie Trexler

We have finally stepped into October: autumn foliage is in full bloom across the hillsides, pumpkins decorate doorsteps and fill produce aisles, apples are sold in heavy bags, and Halloween is just around the corner. Leaves crunch underfoot and the old mansion at the end of the street has a larger presence in the crisp, fall air… Perhaps because it is no longer hiding behind trees thick with green summer leaves, or perhaps because Halloween is a time for imaginations to run wild.

When I first began investigating haunted mansions and ghost tours, I had drawn a distinct line between paranormal stories and actual history as though ghost stories were an elaborate (and eerie) side-story. As I wove my way through websites, imagining lantern-lit tours of the Hermitage, home of President Andrew Jackson, and  dark strolls down the boardwalks in the Victorian Virginia City, Nevada, I realized supernatural stories are not the sole – or even the main – source of intrigue about these places. By letting our imaginations run wild – at Halloween and any time – we are connecting with the past.

Eerie opening, or a trick of light? Photo by Susie Trexler

NBC’s Syfy channel has named – by popular vote – the top three “most haunted” cities in America: Charleston, South Carolina; Savannah, Georgia; and Virginia City, Nevada. Sure, we may relish the thrill of a ghost story (and ghost stories are aplenty), but these cities have something else in common: they are all witness to vivid and important scenes in American history. They are witness to previous eras and societies.

There is something about people that extends across time and place: people like people-stories and gossip. People like things they can connect to, touch, and imagine. By some ironic twist, ghost stories bring history to light.

Are we preserving the ghosts, or are the ghosts preserving the history, themselves?

_______________________________

Use Halloween as an excuse to step into the past! Explore your local cemetery, or indulge in an eerie event at a historic house near you.

Here are a few we found:

• Ghost tour of the National Building Museum in Washington, DC
• Halloween events (kid-friendly) at New Hampshire’s Strawbery Banke
• “Fright Nights” at California’s famous Winchester Mystery House
• A wake for Emma Crawford at Manitou, Colorado’s Miramount Castle
• Lantern tours at The Hermitage, home of President Andrew Jackson
• Haunted tours of Virginia City, Nevada 

Add to the list, if you dare!

Christina's Home Stay in the Uros Islands, Lake Titicaca, Peru - photo: Jason George

Lake Titicaca’s Uros Islands are home to a thriving traditional culture.  The islands, and pretty much everything on and around them, are made of dried totora reeds using techniques dating back hundreds of years. One of the reasons the culture thriving is heritage tourism.

The people living on the islands receive a great number of visitors, the vast majority of whom come on day trips out from Puno. The families alternate days on which they host visitors on their island so that everyone benefits.

Perhaps more interesting than a relatively quick day trip to the islands is an overnight trip. We were fortunate enough to spend two nights this past summer with Christina. She and her extended family have created a homestay on their island. What we saw and learned there was fascinating, in more ways than one. Everything is made of totora reeds, houses, floor, benches, even a chess set. Our time there began with an explanation of how the island is built and maintained, how the houses are made, how the boats are made, how food is traditionally cooked, and so on.

Christina, left, singing with family after dinner - Photo: Jason George

During the evening, after a delicious dinner, Christina and a few members of her family came into the dining house. They sang a few songs for us, in Spanish, French,  Japanese and Aymara, their local language which is slowly dying out. Then, very clearly and eloquently (fellow travelers translated for us), she thanked us for coming and told the story of how she got started in the hospitality business and what it has come to mean for her and her family.  Several years before, two travellers from the Netherlands had suggested that Christina arrange for guests to stay overnight. She thought about this idea and decided, in the best entrepreneurial spirit, to give it a try.

Student at Uros Torani Floating School with her new toothbrush - Photo: Jason George

While on Christina’s island, we met a woman volunteering with French charity Association La Runa who comes each year to distribute toothbrushes collected from school children back in in France. We went with her to the local school to help distribute them. Teeth brushing instructions were given via “assembly”, the children standing at attention in rows. Multiple references were made to “la isla de Christina” as the storage point for additional toothbrushes and instructions.

It became crystal clear that tourism has given Christina, her family, her neighbors, and her community a bright future.

He took a month’s vacation to do a professional internship in metal and wood conservation with Benfica, the most famous soccer team in Portugal.

His work focused on conservation of the team’s vast trophy collection, full of silver cups and wood pedestals in dire need of conservation. The work required skills he didn’t have in his repertoire as an architectural conservator, so he learned a lot. The private conservation firm from Lisbon that was behind the project has since asked him to help launch their architectural conservation department.

Hansel is off to Portugal this winter, once again proving that a volunteer vacation can be a life-changing experience!

See all Hansel’s photos