Celebrate May as National Historic Preservation Month

The Heritage Preservation Society of Putnam County will be hosting three exciting events in May to celebrate National Historic Preservation Month. All are free and open to the public. The Society is also announcing plans for a historic house tour in June to coordinate with these happenings.

Starting May 4 at 2 p.m., the kickoff will be a program on historic landscaping: plantings and plans that reflect the past in the present at the Putnam County Museum.

Internationally-recognized speaker Gregory Pierceall, professor emeritus of Purdue University, of the Horticulture/Landscape Architecture Department, will elaborate on the method and research needed to develop a landscape plan for an historic property and structure. The presentation will outline through examples the site design process and potential.

Pierceall has received many awards for his work in this field, including the Smart Garden Best Public City Garden in Chicago 2009 and the APLD 2003 International Award of Distinction.

For a future event, the Heritage Preservation Society has invited Pierceall to develop a planting design specifically to highlight the Civil War Monument in Forest Hill Cemetery.

Genealogist Diana Brumfield, of Putnam County Public Library, will also be sharing her process for tracing the history of a home and its inhabitants on Tuesday, May 14 at 7 p.m. at the PCPL

The recently renovated Ireland House on Anderson Street and its first family will be used as a working example. Diana will also share 1870 news clippings describing the event and participants of the dedication of the Civil War Monument of Putnam County.

The last event in May will feature John Warner, the preservation consultant from Indianapolis on Saturday, May 31 at the Putnam County Museum at 10:30 a.m.

Warner will speak on his continuing work for the National Register nomination of Forest Hill Cemetery.

Warner was most recently involved in the successful listing of several local districts on the National Register, including the Eastern Enlargement where the John Ireland House is located.

The Ireland House is a prime example of the architectural details that define a classic Italianate structure. This ornately-detailed home was erected circa 1887 by the owner of a mill yard, and beautifully showcases the stunning woodwork produced there.

The building was painstakingly restored by DePauw University to accommodate visiting faculty and dignitaries. The Heritage Preservation Society will open the house to the public on June 14, from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tickets will be $10 for adults, $5 for children. Proceeds will benefit the restoration efforts for the Civil War Monument.