Date of Award
5-2018
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Historic Preservation (MHP)
Department
Planning, Development, and Preservation
Committee Member
Amalia Leifeste, Committee Chair
Committee Member
Dr. Carter Hudgins
Committee Member
Ralph Muldrow
Committee Member
Richard Marks
Committee Member
Robert Morgan
Abstract
The United States Forest Service was established as a federal agency to oversee the nation’s timber production and protect its watersheds. With the acquisition of large tracts of public land came the acquisition of historic structures located on these lands. While the US Forest Service is focused on land management, it still has a duty to protect and properly manage all of the resources under its care, historic ones included. This thesis compares the different management structures of the US Forest Service with the National Parks Service, two federal agencies who own federal lands, one of which focuses on land management and the other which has a dual focus on land management and historic resource management, and the level of stewardship to federally owned historic resources that result from the contrasting institutional organization framework. The US Forest Service’s management of its historic buildings in South Carolina is objectively examined through an analysis of public policy, site conditions, and owner surveys compared to the National Parks Service. The hypothesis of this thesis is affirmed: National Parks Service properties are better cared for than US Forest Service properties and that this difference is rooted in layers of institutional organizational framework. As it currently stands, the US Forest Service is not set up to care for historic structures. Methods to remedy the gap in care include implementing new legislation, changing existing legislation, public-private partnerships, and increased funding.
Recommended Citation
Barrett Burns, Sydney Alexis, "Out of the Woods: Facilitating Stewardship of Historic Resources in the National Forest Service" (2018). All Theses. 2814.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_theses/2814