Historic Preservation- Diane Barthel

Diane Barthel's book, Historic Preservation: Collective Memory and Historical Identity, explores the different aspects of the preservation world. She looks mainly at the differences between British and American preservation in order to explain the mind frame that determines what gets preserved and how it affects different communities. Problems that one country faces is quite different than those of another country's, creating differing practices within the same field. Barthel maintains that British preservation stems from an elite voice, searching to preserve those historical places they deem worthy. In America, as we learned in class last Tuesday, preservation is run by grassroots organizations that focus on not just the elite but rather then neglected as well as the historically important.

An overarching argument that I saw in Barthel's book was the effect preservation can have upon what it is preserving. I know I personally view historic preservation generally in a positive light, believing it is saving history for future generations. Barthel effectively shows that this is not always so. In fact, over-preservation has become a major concern both in Great Britain and in America. Before even beginning this book, I thought about to something a friend had told about his time spent in London. He mentioned that many churches in England may have only 4 or 5 parishioners but is still required to remain running. This is due to the fact that all churches are seen as historic and therefore are forced to remain open. Sure enough, in the book, Barthel mentions this very issue in regards to the cons of too much preservation. Churches that may otherwise have allowed room for new architecture are being kept open, even though often there is no justification for it to remain open.

In America, Barthel mentions the strain between private and public enterprises when it comes to preservation. Many historical landmarks such as churches and homes are privately owned, but seen as a member of the American heritage. Preservationists who strive to protect these buildings are sometimes accused of overstepping their boundaries when it comes to the private/public realm. The example given by Barthel is the proposed selling of a Jewish yeshiva to a developer for the building of a apartment home. Although the owners were in favor of selling, the preservation community argued against the sale due to the historic significance of the house. Eventually the house was declared a landmark and saved from being sold, but at what price? Private owners ma eventually no longer have the rights with their property that America has long been known for.

Obviously, both sides present their own problems and Barthel delves into the issue with an even hand. She expresses concern both for over-preservation and the decay that can come from the lack of it. Although lacking the personal spark that Young possesses in his essays, her topic is also more academic therefore requires a more serious approach. She explores not just her own experience with preservation but rather the experiences of of the collective memory, especially Great Britain and the United States.