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Learn more about your home, research methods and materials, historic preservation, and architectural history.

Informants & Sources

Heritage Preservation Services
National Park Service branch; includes technical guides, resources for preservation efforts, contacts for State Historic Preservation Officers.

Historic American Buildings Survey
National Park Service branch; records accessible via Library of Congress.

Perry Castañeda Library Map Collection
Over 5,000 map images online. Many historical U.S. maps (regional, county, town). Look for page of links to more online maps.

National Register of Historic Places
Look for neighborhood history. Search NRHP online for historic district or "multiple cover" records, which contain detailed descriptions about an area's history and properties, including private homes.

Researching a Historic Property (National Register Bulletin)
Online brochure with hints, research suggestions, lists of document types and specific data recoverable. Also architectural records, style guides and books, subject bibliography. Links to related clearinghouses.

Built in America (Historic American Buildings Survey)
Multiformat surveys of 35,000+ historic structures. Online access to over 350,000 documents, drawings, large-format photos and written histories.

Architectural Character: Identifying the Visual Aspects of Historic Buildings
(includes Architectural Character Checklist/Questionnaire)
Preservation Briefs 17, National Park Service

Understanding Old Buildings: The Process of Architectural Investigation
Preservation Briefs 35, National Park Service

Exterior Paint Problems on Historic Woodwork

Preservation Briefs 10, National Park Service

Painting Historic Interiors
Preservation Briefs 28, National Park Service

Repairing Historic Flat Plaster Walls and Ceilings
Preservation Briefs 21, National Park Service

The Repair of Historic Wooden Windows

Preservation Briefs 9, National Park Service

Materials Analysis & Testing Labs

Applied Consumer Services, Inc.
Paint, paper, wood, textile, particle-size analysis, mildew and stain resistance testing, concrete/stucco analysis, mineral analysis, paint and varnish analysis, material testing.
Hialeah Gardens, FL 800.371.5854

Conservation Center, Institute of Fine Arts, NYU
Organic analysis and microscopy of materials and construction method; works of art, historical, and archeological artifacts.
New York, NY 212.772.5800

Orion Analytical, LLC
Analysis and authentication of materials in art, artifacts, and architecture; adhesives, binders, coatings, ceramics; dyes, fibers, fillers, glass, gilding, inks, lacquers, metals, paints, pigments, stone, tapes, varnishes.
Williamstown, MA 413.458.0233

Philadelphia Museum of Art, Conservation Department
Organic coatings, paint, films, pigments, fillers, metal corrosion products, ceramic and stone degradation products.
Philadelphia, PA 215.684.7540