About 50 people joined CHRS for a Walking Tour of the North East area.

CHRS has contracted with EHT Traceries for preparation of a context study of greater Capitol Hill*– the areas just outside the Capitol Hill Historic District. The context study is a companion to the individual building survey completed last year. It will analyze all the existing historic information, including the database and research findings from the recent study, together with additional new research as needed, to create the complete development story for greater Capitol Hill.

by Donna Hanousek

CHRS would like to thank the volunteers who have submitted their survey forms and/or photos as part of the effort to survey northeast and southeast of the Capitol Hill Historic District. Just in case you haven’t heard, CHRS is working with the ANCs 6A and 6B to survey the buildings outside the Capitol Hill Historic District. Architectural historians from the firm Traceries will undertake the archival survey work (like assembling building permits) and will create an informational database on the buildings. We’ve had volunteers performing the on-site survey work, which provides detailed descriptions of each building, along with a photograph.

CHRS has reconsidered its acceptance of financial assistance for our Beyond the Boundaries survey effort from the Trust for Architectural Easements. We will instead fund the work through our usual fundraising efforts, so as not to give the appearance of endorsing either the preservation easement program or any specific easement granting organization.

by Donna Hanousek

At the end of September, ANC 6B nominated the Barney Circle Historic District to the DC Inventory of Historic Places. The nomination project originated with the Barney Circle Neighborhood Watch Association. A team, consisting of Beth Purcell (author) and Reuben Hameed and Antonette Russell (outreach leaders), worked for over a year to prepare the documentation and generate neighborhood support. Reuben (preservation architect) and Antonette (former ANC Commissioner for Barney Circle) moved off the Hill recently, but the Barney Circle Historic District will be a lasting legacy of their community involvement.

by Donna Hanousek

One of the CHRS Board’s newest and most exciting projects is working on historic preservation efforts with neighborhood groups who are just outside the historic district. This past spring, CHRS arranged for a Preservation Café on House History, which was of particular interest to those outside of the historic district who wished to conduct research on their buildings. CHRS also published a detailed introduction to building history in the May issue of the Hill Rag, entitled “Dating Your Old Building.”

by Donna Hanousek, Chair

The Capitol Hill Restoration Society, in partnership with Advisory Neighborhood Commissions 6A and 6B, is starting to survey the historic resources in neighborhoods both north and east of the Capitol Hill Historic District. On Saturday, November 17th, EHT Traceries, a firm that will provide architectural historian consulting services to the survey effort, conducted a training session for survey volunteers. The volunteers, many of whom live in the survey areas, will be performing on-site survey work and photography. Now what exactly is an historic survey, and what can it be used for? The following is a brief explanation.