Home » Preservation New Jersey announces award recipients

Preservation New Jersey announces award recipients

by Community Contributor

Preservation New Jersey, a Statewide, member-supported, non-profit, historic preservation organization, announced the recipients of the 2021 New Jersey Historic Preservation Awards. The awardees will be celebrated at an event next Wednesday, October 13, 2021 at the 1867 Sanctuary in Ewing, New Jersey.

“This year Preservation New Jersey is celebrating excellence in preservation with the introduction of new categories like the Young Preservationist Award, Dr. Doris C. Carpenter Excellence Award, and Constance Greiff Writing Award, in addition to established awards like the Preservation Projects and Preservation Documents Awards,” stated Executive Director Emily Manz. “These projects all contribute to the preservation of our State’s historic resources and the understanding of our state history.”

“Preservation New Jersey is excited to be recognizing so many diverse, innovative projects from all across the State and the people and organization making preservation possible,” shared Matthew Pisarski, President of the Board of Director of Preservation New Jersey.

The awards will be presented on October 13 from 4-7pm at the 1867 Sanctuary in Ewing. The event will feature outdoor food, drinks, music, and networking followed by the presentation of the Awards in the airy, spacious 1867 Sanctuary. 

Tickets can be purchased online in advance of the event here. 

Sponsors for the event are HMR Architects, Kreilick Conservation, Architectural Window Corporation, The Litt Law Firm, Jablonski Building Conservation, Lear & Pannepacker LLP, Kaese Architecture, Mills + Schnoering Architects, and Connolly + Hickey Historical Architects.

2021 NJ Historic Preservation Award Winners

David H. Knights New Preservation Initiatives Award

Dolly Marshall, Mount Peace Cemetery, Lawnside

Dolly Marshall photo by Heather Khalifa

Dolly Marshall is a preservation activist and trustee of Mount Peace Cemetery in Lawnside, New Jersey. Founded in 1902 as a burial ground for African Americans, many of those interred were excluded from whites-only cemeteries or burial grounds that were affiliated with specific houses of worship. Mount Peace became a resting place for freed blacks, formerly enslaved individuals, and at least 77 Civil War veterans. Dolly has also identified her own ancestors in the Cemetery. Through Dolly’s vision, she has created and implemented many new initiatives to raise the profile of Mount Peace Cemetery. She has increased local and national attention to the Cemetery by engaging with media including articles and news stories featured in the Philadelphia Inquirer, 6ABC Action News, New Jersey Network’s “New Jersey Matters,” NJ 101.5 and Fox29 News. She is always seeking out new ways to collaborate with businesses and other organizations. Last Memorial Day, Dolly put together an educational and informative “Decoration Day” event honoring the veterans of Mount Peace Cemetery. She partnered with the Grand Army of the Republic Civil War Museum located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to host an outdoor commemoration event to educate the public about the history of Decoration Day and military history.

David H. Knights New Preservation Initiatives Award

Mayor Paul M. Kanitra & The Borough of Point Pleasant Beach, Point Pleasant Beach

After winning election, the Mayor Kanitra served as the catalyst to save one of the town’s most historic buildings, The Gottlieb Building, just days before the wrecking ball destroyed it forever. He also conceptualized a new ordinance that created a historic district and incentivized building owners to restore and recreate historic aesthetics in downtown Point Pleasant Beach, and passed a new signage ordinance to clean up signage and mandate wooden and faux wooden materials be used. Mayor Kanitra had the vision to leverage the history of the town to create a year-round destination for businesses and visitors alike.

Young Preservationist Award

Dr. Lynne Calamia, Roebling

Dr. Lynne Calamia is a public history professional with over a decade of professional experience in the field of preservation and public history. She has led museums, preserved historic sites, conserved cultural landscapes, protected industrial history, and raised money as a tireless advocate for historic preservation every step of the way. Currently, as Executive Director of Roebling Museum (Burlington County, NJ), Lynne manages a museum that tells the story of a 1905 company town with a majority immigrant/migrant workforce. Lynne has also involved been involved for the last seven years with an important historic preservation project in Camden, the oldest extant religious building in Camden which is a small Quaker meetinghouse.

 Young Preservationist Award

Taylor Nicole Henry, Wildwoods

Taylor Henry

Taylor Nicole Henry began volunteering with the Wildwood Historical Society in 2017 and quickly rose to become its youngest President in October 2019. During that time Taylor authored the book Wildwoods Houses Through Time that showcased local vernacular architectural and began the popular blog @Tiny Churches documenting NJ places of worship. In the same year she co-founded the preservation advocacy group Preserving the Wildwoods that eventually led to the Wildwoods’ nomination to Preservation New Jersey’s 2019 Top 10 Most Endangered Places. In 2020 and 2021 she was honored by National Trust for Historic Preservation as a PastForward Diversity Scholar.

Preservation Project Award

Lake Hopatcong Train Station, Landing

The Lake Hopatcong Train Station was built in 1911, possibly the only of its kind in New Jersey designed to integrate passenger rail and canal service, as a link between the Morris Canal and the Delaware, Lackawanna &Western Railroad. In 2014, the Lake Hopatcong Foundation acquired the then-vacant train station for use as their headquarters and an environmental and cultural center. The Foundation hired Connolly & Hickey Historical Architects who began with preparation of a Historic Preservation Plan and a successful National Register nomination. Restoration and rehabilitation of the train station was then accomplished over multiple phases of work in five years. The adaptive reuse was accomplished over multiple phases of work across five years. The project began with structural stabilization and restoration of the Ludowici clay tile roof and progressed with upgrades to comply with barrier-free requirements, masonry restoration, window and door restoration, and restoration and upgrade of interior finishes and features so the building reflects its use as a train station while being adaptively reused as the headquarters of the Lake Hopatcong Foundation and its new Environmental and Cultural Center, which opened in 2019.

Preservation Project Award

The Enameling Building at the Historic Village at Allaire, Farmingdale

Enameling Building

The Enameling Building at the Historic Village at Allaire was constructed in 1828, and by the early 1830’s it contained a state-of-the-art enameling furnace. This past year, it underwent a $65 thousand restoration. The project was for both the exterior and interior of the building, and prepared the building for a new exhibition and education space. Exterior renovation involved restoring the cupola and a restoration of both the exterior brick and woodwork on the building. The large furnace stack, with the enamel kiln at the base, is a distinguishing feature of this building. During the current renovation the stack was stabilized, patched up, a new seal placed on the chimney top, and the stack whitewashed. The interior of the building was painted and redesigned as an education center.

Preservation Project Award

Stickley Museum, Craftsman Farms Education Center, Morris Plains

The garage and workshop building at Craftsman Farms was constructed in 1912, approximately one year after the construction of the log house, the key building at the National Historic Landmark site. The building suffered a major fire around 1950 after which the upper portion of the building was reconstructed as two residential apartments. Working with HMR Architects, construction was recently completed on the rehabilitation of the administration building for use as the new Education Center. The upper floors were reconstructed to replicate the original building, reinstating the stucco finish, gable roof, symmetrical fenestration, and rear shed extension. The building will house administration offices at the first floor with flex space for educational programing, lectures, and conference space in the original garage at ground level. A library, reading room and archival storage space are being provided at the second floor.

Preservation Project Award

Adaptive Reuse of Bell Labs, Holmdel

Adaptive Reuse of Bell Labs

The transformation of Bell Labs into the rebranded Bell Works represents one of the largest adaptive reuse projects in the State of New Jersey. Constructed in three phases between 1959 and 1985, the Bell Laboratories – Holmdel building has been transformed, reimagining its function as a destination for business, retail and culture in the heart of northern New Jersey. The building was designed by the prolific mid-century architectural firm of Eero Saarinen and Associates. Once the birthplace of many of the 20th century’s most important technological innovations, today the redesign of the 2,000,000 square foot building is the vision of developer Ralph Zucker of Somerset Development. Alexander Gorlin Architects, G3 Architecture Interiors Planning, and NPZ Style & Decor led the design for this unique adaptive reuse project. Heritage Consulting Group successfully listed the building in the National Register of Historic Places and secured approvals for historic tax credits.

Preservation Project Award

The Proprietary House, Perth Amboy

The Proprietary House in Perth Amboy, one of two extant 18th century British Royal Governors’ Mansions constructed in the United States, recently underwent a major restoration.  In 2018 with a State Department of Community Affairs grant to The Proprietary House Association, CTS Group Architecture/Planning PA was retained for design with Paragon Restoration Corporation to undertake a major exterior restoration of the historic structure. Guided in part by a 1996 Historic Preservation Plan, CTS Group undertook a detailed conditions assessment of the structure which was experiencing increasing and severe deterioration. Guided by the survey and a variety of scientific analyses, brick and brownstone units were repaired or replaced with appropriate matching units, a new mineral coating replaced the failing paint cover, wood windows and features were repaired and painted, the crumbling entry steps were replaced with matching units and slate roofing and wood gutters were restored.

Dr. Doris C. Carpenter Excellence Award

The March of America’s Diverse Army through New Jersey to Achieve American Independence in 1781, Somerset County

The March of Washington’s Diverse Army

According to a French officer who passed through New Jersey to help win American independence at Yorktown, Virginia, one-quarter of George Washington’s Continental Army in 1781 were Black, Indigenous, or mixed race. Yet few Americans know how significant the non-white contribution was to Americans’ quest for freedom.  To put a spotlight on this diverse history, New Jerseyans Brad Fay, Elaine Buck, and Beverly Mills joined the Leadership Council of the Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route Association in 2021 and organized an advocacy and public relations campaign. Their efforts produced a July 4, 2021, Op-Ed about this history in the Washington Post by their Congresswoman, Bonnie Watson Coleman. They also organized “dear colleague” letters to support funding for the Washington-Rochambeau National Historic Trail to tell this story. The letters were signed by 23 members of the US House and US Senate, including both New Jersey Senators and four New Jersey Representatives. They prepared a model resolution of support for the trail and its story, and they organized an August event to commemorate the 240th anniversary of the march, featuring African American reenactors from Trenton.

Dr. Doris C. Carpenter Excellence Award

The Trent House Association, Trenton

The Trent House Association manages and operates the 1719 William Trent House Museum, a National Historic Landmark, owned by the City of Trenton. For many visitors and potential visitors, the site has been associated only with early colonial life. Under the Association’s leadership, many more aspects of the property’s history are being told. Through exhibits, programs, and tours, the Association informs visitors and digital audiences about the lives of indigenous people, European exploration and colonization beginning in the 1600s, the institution of slavery in colonial New Jersey, industrialization and immigration, urban renewal and more. Recognized as a leader in interpreting slavery in the northern colonies, the Association is a co-founder of the Sankofa Collaborative, a group of history and cultural institutions that organizes workshops and compiles and shares resources on African American history and contemporary experiences.

Preservation Documents Award

The Marshalltown Historic District National Register Nomination, Salem

The Marshalltown Historic District National Register nomination marked a first in New Jersey when it was listed in 2013. It was the first antebellum free-Black community to be listed as a historic district on the State and National Registers of Historic Places in New Jersey, and the first in New Jersey to signify the trending formation of such settlements across the American North, and, in a big way, across southern New Jersey before the Civil War. Prepared by Janet Sheridan of Down Jersey Heritage Research, the nomination includes detailed recording of a house, a church, a school house, and two cemeteries as primary sources, and also dove into primary as well as secondary archival sources, deed-mapped with GIS, and took oral histories. It emphasized the agency of newly-freed African Americans in the early Republic who acquired land, built homes, and established institutions. It continues to be a resource today, providing a model for nominating other historic settlements such as Timbuctoo in Burlington County, Springtown and Gouldtown in Cumberland County, and many others.

Historic Preservation Commission Award

Haddon Heights Historic Preservation Commission, Haddon Heights

Haddon Heights Design Guidelines

Haddon Heights, New Jersey in Camden County has had a historic preservation ordinance since 1975. The Haddon Heights Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) with its dedicated members over these many years, has worked hard to designate the eight individual landmarks and the six Historic Districts. Over four months in 2021, Donna Ann Harris of Heritage Consulting Inc. worked closely with the Haddon Heights HPC to create the Design Guidelines for the Historic Districts in the town. The Design Guidelines present preservation treatments and activities that the HPC does, and does not, recommend throughout its handsome full color 160 pages, using more than 225 contemporary and historic photos, maps, text, and drawings to educate and explain these treatments and activities.

Constance Greiff Writing Award

Bonny Beth Elwell, Camden

Bonny Beth Elwell has published two books and countless articles on local history. Her books are Upper Pittsgrove, Elmer, and Pittsgrove, published by Arcadia Press, in 2013, on the history of eastern Salem County; and 18th Century Documents of Pittsgrove Presbyterian Church from 2016. She has written 24 Ancestors’ Attic articles, numerous articles for the Elmer Times, and articles in the annual Greater Elmer Area Historical Society Pictorial Fundraising Book. As a volunteer Ms. Elwell serves as President of the Greater Elmer Area Historical Society, Vice President of the Genealogical Society of Salem County, a board member of the Salem County Historical Society, and a member of the Salem County Cultural and Heritage Commission.

 Sarah P. Fiske Legacy & Leadership Award

Brian LoPinto, Paterson

Brian LoPinto is one of the founding members of The Friends of Hinchliffe Stadium and has spent nearly half his life advocating for the preservation of Hinchliffe Stadium in Paterson, New Jersey. Brian has worked tirelessly to seeing the stadium preserved and revitalized as a great sports venue and centerpiece of a great and thriving city. Under Brian’s dedicated guidance and perseverance, The Friends have joined with the Paterson Public Schools, who own the stadium, the City of Paterson, who have signed a Shared Services Agreement with the Schools, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which has declared Hinchliffe Stadium a “National Treasure” and the National Park Service, which has declared it a National Landmark and who has included it in Paterson’s National Historical Park. On April 14, 2021, after nearly 20 years of campaigning to save this historic ballpark, the city of Paterson broke ground on a $94 million renovation to restore Hinchliffe Stadium, one of the last remaining Negro League ballparks, to its former glory.

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Submitted by Preservation New Jersey

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