Archival Assistance Initiative Returns

The Archive Project’s support of archival efforts at small preservation-related organizations received a major boost for 2022. Thanks to the generosity of the Leon Levy Foundation, the Archive Project is able to offer several of its Shelby White & Leon Levy Archival Assistance Initiative Grants this year. These small grants support archival assessments, digitization, and other projects designed to make the history of the preservation movement available to the public.

Applications have already been submitted for this new grant round, and winners will be announced later this year. The new round revitalizes the Archive Project’s longstanding Archival Assistance Initiative, which dates back to an initial set of grants awarded in 2013.

Carnegie Hill Neighbors Reading Room

A variety of urbanism–and historic preservation–related books found a longterm home recently in a new reading room at the office of Carnegie Hill Neighbors (CHN) on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The Archive Project played a key role as connector. After acquiring a significant collection of books from tour guide Joyce Mendelsohn on a tip from Jay Shockley, discussions between Lo Van der Valk and Joanna Cawley from Carnegie Hill Neighbors and the Archive Project led to an arrangement for more public access and the creation of a reading room at 1326 Madison Avenue. Sweat equity from Vogel and John Harris, the Archive Project’s Jeffe Fellow, as well as Nikita Klebnikov from CHN, placed the many boxes of books in their new home. A ribbon cutting for the reading room is tentatively for June 15, 2022.

Mentions in The New York Times, Gothamist

The Archive Project’s oral history collection and Preservation History Database are regularly cited by publications. Recently, The New York Times included information from NYPAP’s oral history with the late Ed Kirkland and Gothamist cited information from the Preservation History Database regarding the City Beautiful Movement in the context of a preservation matter on the Upper West Side.

In Memoriam – Lori Zabar

The Archive Project notes with sadness the death of preservationist Lori Zabar. She engaged enthusiastically with preservation from telling the story of Zabar’s in a recent book to supporting the Preservation League and her alma mater, Columbia University. Lori’s knowledge and good humor were always in evidence at many preservation events. Please read the fitting tribute by the Preservation League of New York State available here: https://www.preservenys.org/blog/mourning-theloss-of-lori-zabar. More in our fall issue.