published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

This investigation centers on early concrete technology used in Seguin, Texas, during the mid-19th century. Over the course of fifty years, more than ninety concrete structures were built in Seguin. Over the last century, these have dwindled to twenty extant structures. Much of the previous Seguin concrete era research has focused on the historical narrative and architectural description. This study aims to answer questions that previous research has not — it investigated the raw materials used in making Seguin’s concrete. The results provide new information about the Seguin concrete structures, providing guidance for their long-term maintenance. The materials analysis uses instrumental techniques such as scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, and x-ray diffraction to determine the chemical composition and crystalline structure of the cement binder from several extant structures in Seguin. Gathering both qualitative and quantitative data for the binder allowed us to identify the raw materials used in the concrete and better understand the construction methods. Studying the materials and methods increased our understanding of these historic structures and will inform future preservation efforts. / text

The dogtrot house type is an important type of vernacular architecture in the American landscape, particularly in rural areas of the southern United States. Little is formally written or known about the dogtrot type houses in New Orleans, which appear to be a unique evolution of the rural dogtrot form specifically adapted for the urban environment. This thesis examines the existing literature regarding the dogtrot house type and analyzes the architectural history of the remaining dogtrot type homes in New Orleans in order to establish that they are correctly classified, and also to investigate any possible links with rural dogtrots. The findings promotes awareness of the dogtrot house type in the urban setting, and contribute to the larger picture of vernacular architectural adaptation in the United States. Further, this thesis lays the foundation for landmarking the 16 remaining dogtrots in New Orleans.

The Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) and the Federal Writers' Project were two government survey programs from the 1930s that, in part, documented slavery in America. Historically stakeholders utilized these resources in isolation of one another. Coordination between the two programs in this study has identified five documented slave houses from the HABS collection that are directly linked to a slave narrative recorded by the Writers' Project. The slave narrative brings to life the spatial density, degree of accommodations, nature of the facilities, and attitudes of those who inhabited the slave house. The relationship between the historical record and the stories of the inhabitants is crucial to our understanding and interpretation of the lifeways and settings of enslaved African Americans in the Antebellum South. Historic preservationists now have five personal accounts of the historic plantation landscape upon which to build future interdisciplinary appreciation and research.

155 p. / Lone Pine Indian Shaker Village, located in The Dalles, Oregon, is the last remaining example of a late nineteenth century fishing settlement, a resource type that once proliferated along the banks of the Columbia River. Lone Pine Indian Shaker Village is also significant for its association with mixed heritage settlement, Native American fishing traditions, and the Indian Shaker Religion, a religion unique to the Northwest. This is an historical and architectural study of the village which includes the historical context and detailed description of the built environment, as it exists today and has evolved over time. Photographs, measured drawings, oral interviews and archival research are used to document and analyze the history and built environment of the village. Also included is a discussion of Treatment and Use options, followed by the author's recommendation for preservation and use of the village complex as an interpretive site. Today the village complex is vacant and suffers from neglect, and on November 19, 1996 the Indian Shaker Church collapsed under snow loads. Although an unfortunate event, it brings the issue of preservation of the entire site to the forefront. If no management plan is developed this valuable piece of Northwest cultural history will be lost forever. / Keepers of the Preservation Education Fund's H. Ward Jandl Fellowship

This thesis is a research design that will serve as a baseline for further research and as a more inclusive interpretation at the Judah P. Benjamin Memorial at the Gamble Plantation Historic State Park in Ellenton, Florida. It reviews the history and archaeology of Robert Gamble's nineteenth-century enslaved labor-worked sugar plantation, focusing on how the demands of this capitalistic enterprise were expressed in the plantation's culture and on the landscape. This thesis reviews the literature on the archaeology of slavery in the United States and the Caribbean to provide a critical lens through which new directions in research might be seen and conceived. At the same time, it reviews the archaeological and historical resources associated with the plantation. The thesis is motivated by the following main research question: What was the nature of slavery on the Gamble Plantation? Subsidiary questions include the following: How was slavery evident in the plantation landscape? What were the day-to-day lifeways and activities of the enslaved labor force on the Gamble Plantation? While direct evidence of slave life at the Gamble Plantation might be scant, through a consideration of the literature we can infer how slave activity might be reflected in the archaeological record. It offers research methods to assist in obtaining answers to how is this plantation's landscape built which might illustrate slavery activity. The thesis also proceeds from the assumption that Gamble Plantation's history can be made more complete and relevant to park visitors. Public presentation is critically examined and stakeholders are identified. It concludes with suggestions on how can a more comprehensive and inclusive history can be told.

This document proposes historic preservation guidelines for the downtown area of the City of St. George, Utah. It grew from a summer internship with the city where I took inventory of the streetscape in the Historic Downtown and prepared recommendations in the form of a PowerPoint Presentation that was given to the city council. This paper summarizes the summer internship and introduces a more appropriate approach based on reflection of the internship. The new approach involves a thorough inventory of the historic character, in-depth research of the historic elements that contribute to the historic character, development of design guidelines and standards, reviews, and codification of the design guidelines and standards. The historic elements that contribute most to the city’s historic character are identified as 1) block and lot layout and building setbacks, 2) architecture, 3) irrigation ditches, 4) tree lined streets, and 5) other streetscape elements and site features. Through comprehensive research of old photography, literature, and existing conditions these historic elements are further defined. The historic elements are currently being specified in design guidelines and standards and reviewed by the city in preparation for possible codification. (173 pages)

Abstract Strip development eases communities’ economic troubles by providing jobs and cheap goods at the expense of a sense of place and social fabric. Four factors are critical to the dissolution of place in strip development: mobility, standardization, specialization, and technology. (Randolph Hester) Mobility gives people the freedom to move over distances with little constraint; a consequence of this is a produced sense of rootlessness within many communities. Standardization creates placelessness in communities by the repetition of form and function. Specialization diminishes comprehensive knowledge of place and complex social and ecological thinking. Technology may divorce people from their natural environments. I want to test these four place indicated principles within LaFollette, Tn. Through methods of mapping, observation, structured interviews, and photographic and archival research I will show how strip development has negatively altered the social and economic development of the city of LaFollette. I will identify elements that currently and historically give the city of LaFollette a sense of place, and encourage social interaction and investment. Strip development can drastically alter the dynamics of communities, both physically and socially. How can communities grow and develop while maintaining this connection to “place”, and how can the social dynamic of a community be encouraged in light of a changing, and growing community?

The conversion of industrial waste sites, also known as brownfields, into sustainable green space can impact the surrounding community in a number of ways. This thesis is a compilation of three case studies in low-income areas of Los Angeles which have all experienced a brownfield to green space conversion. All three projects are dictated by various stakeholders and are located at the intersection of economic and environmental issues. I examine how the stakeholders of these projects affect the process and design and in turn how the process and design affects the community surrounding the site. Additionally this thesis sheds light on how the social, environment and economic implications of these projects change depending on the structural paradigms behind them.

The Adair Park neighborhood in southwest Atlanta was designed as a residential enclave for working class whites that has evolved to what it is today: an area primarily inhabited by low-income minorities. Many of its residents have worked to preserve the area's distinctive architectural heritage. Low housing values and vacancies have attracted affordable housing developers such as the Atlanta affiliate of Habitat for Humanity. In response to specific plans for the development of affordable housing in the area, members of Adair Park organized themselves to petition the City of Atlanta to adopt architectural standards that preserved the existing housing stock, and ensured that any new construction would be compatible with the neighborhood's architectural character. This study explores the tensions between inner-city communities and affordable housing developers in the quest for affordable and architecturally significant neighborhoods. The conclusions from this research suggest that the desire of predominately low-income neighborhoods to preserve the architecture character of historically significant neighborhoods may be firmly rooted in middle class aspirations and values. Moreover, the conclusions from this research also suggest non-profit housing developers should consider these attitudes prior to constructing affordable housing in predominately low-income neighborhoods.