Taylor and Francis

Taylor and Francis

English

The National Register of Historic Places transformed historic preservation in the United States. John Sprinkle's lively history of the formulation of the Register's criteria of significance transforms our understanding of policies fundamental to the modern preservation movement and historic preservation's own rich history.— Carter L. Hudgins, Director, Clemson University/College of Charleston Graduate Program in Historic Preservation In this nuanced look into the origins of the National Register criteria, Sprinkle shows the fascinating evolution of ideas for determining a property’s significance in American history. Sprinkles’ meticulous historical approach and mastery of an amazing body of evidence allows him to explore the many test cases and dilemmas faced by the early preservation community. His close reading and critical eye will help students and professionals alike to understand this bedrock of preservation policy. — Donald W. Linebaugh, Professor and Area Chair, Graduate Program in Historic Preservation, University of Maryland Sprinkler’s distinctive contribution is in his foregrounding of the criteria and the politics and personalities that inflected their crafting. The book comes out at a time when all kinds of non-economic values in the public realm are being classified and assessed. The wonderful and revealing detail of this book can function, therefore, to caution against the authority enjoyed by those ‘neutral’ frameworks that assume to work on behalf of us all. — Gareth Hoskins, Aberystwyth University “[Sprinkle’s] book opens new perspectives on the history of our preservation processes and assumptions. I predict it will be a springboard for future students and scholars…”-Greg Donofrio, University of Minnesota, USA “History can be dry. Not so for Sprinkle’s terrific book.” -Jay Roberts, Jaybird's Jottings