The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic
Properties, 1995
Standards for Preservation
- A property will be used as it was historically, or be given a new use
that maximizes the retention of distinctive materials, features, spaces,
and spatial relationships. Where a treatment and use have not been
identified, a property will be protected and, if necessary, stabilized
until additional work may be undertaken.
- The historic character of a property will be retained and preserved.
The replacement of intact or repairable historic materials or alteration
of features, spaces, and spatial relationships that characterize a
property will be avoided.
- Each property will be recognized as a physical record of its time,
place, and use. Work needed to stabilize, consolidate, and conserve
existing historic materials and features will be physically and
visually compatible, identifiable upon close inspection, and properly
documented for future research.
- Changes to a property that have acquired historic significance in
their own right will be retained and preserved.
- Distinctive materials, features, finishes, and construction techniques
or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property will be
preserved.
- The existing condition of historic features will be evaluated to
determine the appropriate level of intervention needed. Where the
severity of deterioration requires repair or limited replacement
of a distinctive feature, the new material will match the old in
composition, design, color, and texture.
- Chemical or physical treatments, if appropriate, will be undertaken
using the gentlest means possible. Treatments that cause damage to
historic materials will not be used.
- Archeological resources will be protected and preserved in place.
If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures will be
undertaken.
Standards for Rehabilitation
- A property will be used as it was historically or be given a new use
that requires minimal change to its distinctive materials, features,
spaces, and spatial relationships.
- The historic character of a property will be retained and preserved.
The removal of distinctive materials or alteration of features, spaces,
and spatial relationships that characterize a property will be avoided.
- Each property will be recognized as a physical record of its time,
place, and use. Changes that create a false sense of historical
development, such as adding conjectural features or elements from other
historic properties, will not be undertaken.
- Changes to a property that have acquired historic significance in their
own right will be retained and preserved.
- Distinctive materials, features, finishes, and construction techniques
or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property will be preserved.
- Deteriorated historic features will be repaired rather than replaced. Where
the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature,
the new feature will match the old in design, color, texture, and, where possible,
materials. Replacement of missing features will be substantiated by documentary
and physical evidence.
- Chemical or physical treatments, if appropriate, will be undertaken using
the gentlest means possible. Treatments that cause damage to historic materials
will not be used.
- Archeological resources will be protected and preserved in place. If such
resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures will be undertaken.
- New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction will not
destroy historic materials, features, and spatial relationships that characterize
the property. The new work will be differentiated from the old and will be
compatible with the historic materials, features, size, scale and proportion,
and massing to protect the integrity of the property and its environment.
- New additions and adjacent or related new construction will be undertaken
in such a manner that, if removed in the future, the essential form and integrity
of the historic property and its environment would be unimpaired.
Standards for Restoration
- A property will be used as it was historically or be given a new use which
reflects the property's restoration period.
- Materials and features from the restoration period will be retained and
preserved. The removal of materials or alteration of features, spaces, and
spatial relationships that characterize the period will not be undertaken.
- Each property will be recognized as a physical record of its time, place,
and use. Work needed to stabilize, consolidate and conserve materials and
features from the restoration period will be physically and visually compatible,
identifiable upon close inspection, and properly documented for future research.
- Materials, features, spaces, and finishes that characterize other historical
periods will be documented prior to their alteration or removal.
- Distinctive materials, features, finishes, and construction techniques
or examples of craftsmanship that characterize the restoration period will
be preserved.
- Deteriorated features from the restoration period will be repaired rather
than replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of
a distinctive feature, the new feature will match the old in design, color,
texture, and, where possible, materials.
- Replacement of missing features from the restoration period will be substantiated
by documentary and physical evidence. A false sense of history will not be
created by adding conjectural features, features from other properties, or
by combining features that never existed together historically.
- Chemical or physical treatments, if appropriate, will be undertaken using
the gentlest means possible. Treatments that cause damage to historic materials
will not be used.
- Archeological resources affected by a project will be protected and preserved
in place. If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures will be
undertaken.
- Designs that were never executed historically will not be constructed.
Standards for Reconstruction
- Reconstruction will be used to depict vanished or non-surviving portions
of a property when documentary and physical evidence is available to permit
accurate reconstruction with minimal conjecture, and such reconstruction is
essential to the public understanding of the property.
- Reconstruction of a landscape, building, structure, or object in its historic
location will be preceded by a thorough archeological investigation to identify
and evaluate those features and artifacts which are essential to an accurate
reconstruction. If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures will
be undertaken.
- Reconstruction will include measures to preserve any remaining historic
materials, features, and spatial relationships.
- Reconstruction will be based on the accurate duplication of historic features
and elements substantiated by documentary or physical evidence rather than
on conjectural designs or the availability of different features from other
historic properties. A reconstructed property will recreate the appearance
of the non-surviving historic property in materials, design, color, and texture.
- A reconstruction will be clearly identified as a contemporary re-creation.
- Designs that were never executed historically will not be constructed.
Last modified: Sun Nov 9 18:21:01 CST 2003
