1st Edition
Heritage Conservation in the United States Enhancing the Presence of the Past
0. Like Saul on the Road to Damascus 1. The New Preservation 2. Visibility and Representation 3. Drifting Away from the Truth 4. Districts and Displacement 5. Awakening and Acknowledgement 6. Heritage Conservation and Generational Significance
Biography
John H. Sprinkle, Jr. is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Maryland’s School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation. He has written extensively about the history of historic preservation in the United States.
"This outstanding book speaks eloquently and powerfully to an ongoing and important challenge which underscores that, on this noble journey we call historic preservation, our efforts must reflect the "Face of America." Dr. Sprinkle emphasizes that, if we are to be fully successful in our preservation efforts, we must be true to history and include a recognition of the contributions of all cultures in the development of our nation. A must read for all those who care for the preservation of our diverse and rich collective heritage."
Robert G. Stanton, 15th Director of the National Park Service
"As the historic preservation movement stands at yet another inflection point, John Sprinkle takes us back to the second generation of practitioners who stood within a formalized system of heritage conservation. He documents the intersections (and contradictions therein) between the preservation movement and the modern fight for Civil Rights. This book promises to serve as a self-reflection, and much needed context, for a field looking to re-evaluate the very systems codified by the New Preservationists of the 1960s, 70s, and 80s."
Priya Chhaya, Public Historian
Winner of the 2024 Organization of American Historians Richard W. Leopold Prize
"Grounding the transformations in how the state preserves and interprets the past within the broader social,
political, and cultural context of the twentieth century, Sprinkle shows us that this is a complicated story that eschews simplistic progressive interpretations of how institutions change. In the pages of Sprinkle’s book are the voices of African American activists and other minority groups who drove the profound transformations in thinking around what the United States should preserve, and on whose terms. The Leopold Prize seeks to recognize the important work being done by historians outside of the academy, and Sprinkle’s Heritage Conservation in the United States is a shining example of those efforts."
