Delaware State Review Board for Historic Preservation meeting to take place remotely on Feb. 24, 2021
The Delaware State Review Board for Historic Preservation will hold its next public meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021 from 10 a.m. to Noon. In keeping with Gov. Carney’s current guidance regarding COVID-19, the meeting will be conducted remotely, via internet on Zoom or by telephone. Go to the following for a complete meeting agenda.
During the meeting, State Review Board members will evaluate a National Register of Historic Places nomination for the African Union Church and Cemetery of Iron Hill located in New Castle County. The nomination was prepared by the University of Delaware’s Center for Historic Architecture and Design in consultation with, and with the consent of, trustees from St. Daniel’s Community Church of Iron Hill. Funding was provided by the National Park Service through a Historic Preservation Fund sub-grant awarded to New Castle County (a Certified Local Government) and managed by the Delaware State Historic Preservation Office. The nomination was approved by the New Castle County Historic Review Board on Nov. 4, 2020 which unanimously recommended that it be submitted to the State Review Board for consideration.
African Union Church of Iron Hill, also known historically as Union American Church of Iron Hill, St. Daniel’s Union American Methodist Episcopal Church of Iron Hill, and now called St. Daniel’s Community Church of Iron Hill, is the oldest known surviving free Black church that was built as part of Peter Spencer’s African Union Church movement in northern Delaware.
As a Spencer church, it is representative of the religious practices and culture of rural Black communities in New Castle County, Del. from the antebellum period through desegregation in the 1970s. It also reflects the vernacular building practices of local Black congregations — particularly the construction of impermanent church buildings, Gothic Revival renovations in the late-19th and early-20th centuries, and mid-20th century renovations using modern vernacular materials.
For additional information, go to the following: nomination synopsis, nomination form, photos.
As per the provisions of the Delaware Freedom of Information Act, members of the public may virtually attend the meeting. To participate, go to the following hyperlink. Participants are not required to download a special application and need only enter their e-mail address and first and last names before clicking the “Join Webinar” button.
To participate via telephone, call United States Toll at 1-301-715-8592 and enter the following access code: 813 0546 3315. Go to the following for global call-in numbers.
Copies of the minutes will be made available upon request in accordance with the law. Written comments may be submitted prior to the meeting date. The public may also submit comments and questions online during the virtual meeting.
The Delaware State Review Board for Historic Preservation serves as an advisory body to the State Historic Preservation Officer, the State official who has been appointed by the governor to oversee and implement the State’s preservation policies in accordance with federal standards. State review boards were created to function primarily as professional bodies that can objectively evaluate the historic significance of properties and provide professional advice on historic preservation matters. In order to accomplish this, a majority of the members must meet minimum professional requirements established in regulation by the National Park Service and represent certain professional disciplines established by the National Historic Preservation Act and amplified in regulation by the National Park Service.
The Delaware State Review Board consists of 10 members, led by chair James Ellison, an architect, and vice chair Reba Hollingsworth, Ph.D. Professionals include an archaeologist, architectural historian, architect, historian and a preservation planner. Citizen members are preservation partners who have demonstrated a knowledge of, and competence and interest in, historic preserva¬tion.
For additional information, please contact Madeline Dunn, the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs’ National Register coordinator via e-mail at madeline.dunn@delaware.gov or by calling 302-736-7417.