Preservation in Mississippi
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MissPres News Roundup 2-26-2010
I can’t believe it’s the end of February! I keep thinking Spring should be in the air, but so far, other than the birds that have come back to make their nest under my window awning, I can’t see the signs. This being Mississippi though, we’ll wake up next week or the week after and … Continue reading
Abandoned Mississippi: Mt. Holly, Lake Washington
On my recent trip to Greenville, I swung through the Lake Washington community to check on Mt. Holly, the Italianate antebellum mansion that I had heard was falling into disrepair. As you may recall, Mt. Holly was one of the mystery places in our latest Name This Place contest, and to summarize the information we … Continue reading
Architect Pics: Claude H. Lindsley
I admit to being especially fascinated by Mississippi architect C.H. Lindsley: he came up apparently without any formal architectural training, designed two of the state’s most prominent skyscrapers when barely 30–the Tower Building (Standard Life) in Jackson and the Threefoot Building in Meridian–left the state during the Depression, moved to the Mississippi Coast in the … Continue reading
Grants for Rosenwald Schools
The National Trust has announced a fifth round of grants for Rosenwald schools, courtesy of a partnership with the Lowe’s Foundation. According to the NT website: For the fifth consecutive year, Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation has partnered with the National Trust for Historic Preservation to provide grants to save important historic buildings. In 2010, … Continue reading
Still No Roof on Eaton School
Note: This post has been heavily modified to remove strong language. Driving past Hattiesburg yesterday under a brooding sky, I decided to swing by Eaton School, which I supposed must have a new roof by now, given that the Hattiesburg American article two weeks ago indicated it was supposed to go on that week. … Continue reading
Reflections On A Success Story
As I swung open the doors at 235 West Capitol Street on the 4th of January, 2010, I could barely contain myself. The once rotten shell of the King Edward had become a shining beacon of light and warmth. As I hurried to register, I couldn’t help but admire the whole scene. Marble floors gleamed … Continue reading
Pigeons to Pearls…The King Edward Flies Again
Thursday, the 17th of December, 2009, was an important day for downtown Jackson. Developer David Watkins snipped a scarlet ribbon and the King Edward was back in business after forty-three years of solitude. Arduous as the task was, Watkins and his partners Deuce McAllister and Historic Restoration Inc. of New Orleans had the nerve and … Continue reading
Ceres Plantation Update
Since we won’t be having a news roundup this week, I wanted to get this link out to those of you following the Ceres Plantation saga in Warren County. As you remember, the Warren County Port Commission owns the property as part of its large and somewhat vacant industrial park at the Flowers exit. After … Continue reading
A Preservation Philosophy That Doesn’t Kowtow to the Green Movement
For those of you who were around these parts way back in April, 2009, you might remember that my post “Green = Energy Efficient?” took on an op-ed piece by National Trust president Richard Moe published in the New York Times, in which old buildings were twice called “wasteful” and that generally seemed to be … Continue reading
When Budget Cuts Hit Home
Well, after an unexpected four-day weekend for some of us in central and southern Mississippi (and maybe stretching to a 5-day weekend for some who get off for Mardi Gras), it’s back to the daily grind. If you enjoy snow pictures, you can check out a few I took while wandering my Fondren neighborhood during … Continue reading
MissPres News Roundup 2-12-2010
Can we hope for a snowy Friday? Or better yet, a snowed-in Friday when I can rise from my bed, take a peek out the window to assess the state of the streets, and decide that the wisest course of action would really be to just go back to bed? We shall see. We missed … Continue reading
A Trip To Greenville
On one of these dreary winter days we’ve been having this year, I took a drive with an old friend up to Greenville. We went the back way, which I loved–through the deep woods of Yazoo County, over the Yazoo River at Satartia, and then into the Delta and the National Forest bottomlands. I was … Continue reading
Before and After: Mississippi River Basin Model
There’s a new blog on the block, and I think a good number of you might want to add it to your blog reader. Created by “Kodachromeguy” and based in Vicksburg (I think this is the third photo/history blog from over Vicksburg way I’ve heard of lately–must be something in the water), it’s called Urban … Continue reading
Goodbye Old Capitol
Since the very first post on Preservation in Mississippi last year was about the opening of the New Old Capitol, I decided it would be fun to just have the first post of every year be about the Old Capitol, making the OC our touchstone, as it were. So I had this neat post about … Continue reading
Paying Forward to Haiti
There’s no question that the recent Haiti earthquake was one of the most significant human disasters in our generation. Seeing the miles of destroyed buildings has also brought back memories of our own disaster, Hurricane Katrina. Obviously, there are many emergency situations in Haiti that are of more immediate importance right now, but a longer-range … Continue reading
A New Look for a New Year
As all of you no doubt know, Tuesday begins the second year of Preservation in Mississippi, The Blog. I always like to start a new year with a fresh look, so instead of getting plastic surgery, I’ve done a little re-design, complete with a new header, the Durant School in Holmes County, built in 1941-42, … Continue reading
Name This Place 4–Final Standings
Yesterday, while I was away in Natchez, the final battle took place for supremacy in the fourth annual Name This Place contest. Tsj1957 pulled out a win, even though Carunzel correctly identified the last place of the week, the Coleman Library at Tougaloo. It all came down to a difference of one point, and we … Continue reading
Name This Place 4.5–The Grand Finale
Whew, we’ve reached the end of another competitive contest, and today’s results will decide who earns the title Mississippi’s Preservationist Extraordinaire. Earlier in the week, W. White took the lead and held it for two days before tsj1957 battled back for a tie on Wednesday and took a one-point lead yesterday. We’ve set some records … Continue reading
Name That Place 4.45–Bonus Round
Identify this historic place and you win an extra point in this week’s Name This Place. One person, one point only in this round. The only person who gets a point is the one who correctly identifies it, along with its location. You can click on the photo to make it larger.
Name This Place 4.4
We’re down to the nitty gritty on this our fourth day of Name This Place, an exciting contest of skill, knowledge, and ability to google. I’m not even going to attempt to recount yesterday’s events–you can read the plethora of comments and try to follow what happened. Suffice it to say, we have a tie … Continue reading
Name This Place 4.3
Ok, mid-week in our little contest of architectural and historical knowledge, W. White has held on to an early lead, but the field is still close–it’s anybody’s game right now. W. White grabbed the lead on Monday by correctly identifying the Prentiss County Courthouse and adding information about it for an extra point. But then … Continue reading
Name This Place 4.2
Well, folks, we have a contest going on here. In yesterday’s action, W. White jumped out to an early lead by correctly identifying the Prentiss County Courthouse in Booneville and also mentioned that it has recently been renovated by Belinda Stewart Architects. Carunzel earned a point by giving the year of construction and architect, N.W. … Continue reading
Name This Place 4.1
Previous Mississippi Preservationist Extraordinaires: Name This Place 1: tsj1957 Name This Place 2: doakley Name This Place 3: Carunzel These are the names that will live on through the ages as the shining lights of the MissPres universe. Your name could be next in this esteemed lineage, if you can Name This Place. Remember to … Continue reading
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