Part 1: What is Historic Landscape Preservation?
Historic landscape preservation is a smaller, and often misunderstood, field within the broader preservation movement, but it is vital for understanding and conserving the environmental and cultural narratives of places. In Utah, many historic landscapes disappear before their full significance is recognized. These landscapes are not merely backdrops for historic buildings; rather, they are integral to understanding historical context and enriching our cultural heritage. This post marks the beginning of a four-part series delving into the significance of historic landscape preservation for the preservation of cultural heritage, offering insights which, while focused on Utah, hold relevance on a national and global scale.
To begin with, understanding what constitutes a historical landscape is essential. The Cultural Landscape Foundation explains that they can range from vast rural lands to small homestead yards. Historical landscapes can include grand estates, public gardens, college campuses, and more. They are the expressions of visual and spatial relationships that tell stories of the past. Learn more here.
Types of Historic Landscapes
The U.S. Park Service categorizes historical landscapes into several types:
Historic Designed Landscape
These are consciously designed spaces which may showcase pivotal developments as well as significant aesthetic tastes in landscape architecture. These landscapes are consciously designed or laid out by a landscape architect, master gardener, architect, or horticulturist according to design principles, or an amateur gardener working in a recognized style or tradition.
- Examples: Parks, campuses, and estates.
Io LandArch completed the Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) for Pioneer Park in Salt Lake City, Utah
Historic Vernacular Landscape
These landscapes evolved through use by the people whose activities shaped them, reflecting the cultural character of these communities. Function plays a significant role in these landscapes.
- Examples: Rural villages, industrial complexes, and agricultural landscapes.
Io Completed the Historic American Landscapes Survey for the Ogden Business Exchange, and is currently working on the OBE commons, a public realm project which brings the site’s history to the fore.
Historic Site
These landscapes are significant for their association with specific historical events or persons.
- Examples: Battlefields and president’s house properties.
Working with a team led by FFKR Architects, Io LandArch led the landscape architecture component of the NRHP submission for Fort Deseret as part of the Fort Deseret Improvement Study. The featured image at the top of this blog is also a picture of historic Fort Deseret.
Ethnographic Landscape
These landscapes contain a variety of natural and cultural resources which are important to an area’s heritage.
- Examples: contemporary settlements, religious sacred sites and massive geological structures.
For Aultorest Memorial Park, Io LandArch wrote the architectural description of the mausoleum, took photos, and completed the nomination for the National Register of Historic Places.
The drive to preserve landscapes extends the logic of traditional historic preservation, which initially focused only on America’s architectural heritage. The practice has expanded to encompass landscapes, recognizing their ability to convey significant cultural values and provide insights into our relationship with the natural environment.
The Pioneer Park CLR works towards preserving the park as public open space, guiding future improvements that will honor the history of the space, and preserving the park’s historically significant and character defining features.
Historic landscape preservation helps us understand our collective past as we look forward towards shaping a sustainable future. The preservation of historic landscapes helps communities foster deeper connections with their environment, while also promoting sustainable practices by reusing existing structures and protecting significant land areas, which resonates with both historical preservation and modern environmental movements. Into the future, preserving historic landscapes will continue to play a critical role in the preservation of our unique cultural heritage.
Click here to learn more about our historic landscape preservation practice.