Cultural Landscape Report for Fort Tilden, Site History, Existing Conditions, Analysis and Treatment, Gateway NRA

Selvek, Christina; Auwaerter, John; Curry, George

A Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) is the primary document used by the National Park Service for management of its historically significant cultural landscapes. A CLR provides park managers with a comprehensive site history, documents existing conditions, evaluates the historic significance and character of the landscape, and provides treatment recommendations to guide short and long-term management. This report for Fort Tilden has been developed according to the Guide to Cultural Landscape Reports: Contents, Process, and Techniques (1998). It consists of Part I of a CLR (Site History, Existing Conditions, and Analysis and Evaluation), along with preliminary treatment recommendations (but not a full treatment plan which comprises Part II of a CLR). The Site History and Existing Conditions sections document in narrative and graphic form the physical evolution of the landscape through to the present. The Analysis and Evaluation addresses the historic significance of the property according to the National Register criteria and evaluates the historic character of the cultural landscape by addressing changes since the end of the historic period. As outlined in the project agreement, the primary purposes of this CLR are: 1. To determine how the landscape of the existing National Register district (fortification area) contributes to the listed property; 2. To determine whether the portion of the fort outside of the National Register district (post and wharf areas) appears eligible for listing in the National Register; 3. To provide treatment guidelines to inform line item construction project “Replace Water Distribution System at Fort Tilden,” PMIS 91049; and 4. To provide general guidance on preserving and enhancing the historic character of the landscape. Overall, research for this CLR has been undertaken at a “limited” level of investigation, as outlined in the project scope. As defined in the NPS Cultural Resource Management Guideline (NPS 28, 1998), “limited” means research in available published sources and easily accessible documentary sources, nondestructive field investigation, and brief interviews (in this case, with park staff). Research focused on the fortification area (Fort Tilden Historic District), being the area currently identified as an historic property, and secondarily on the post and wharf areas where substantial physical changes have altered the landscape since the fort was transferred to the NPS in 1974. Due to the limited level of research and purpose of this report, documentation focuses on the broad-scale characteristics and character-defining features of the landscape, rather on minor features. Since initial completion of this report in 2005, the Keeper of the National Register determined in 2009 that the entire Fort Tilden Military Reservation, except for the Army Reserve Center, is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places during a period of significance from 1917 through 1967. The original findings of the CLR, that the post and wharf areas do not appear eligible for listing in the National Register due to loss of integrity, have been removed from the National Register evaluation within the Analysis and Evaluation chapter. The cultural landscape evaluation retains the original finding that the cultural landscape of the post and wharf areas overall does not retain historic character. The treatment recommendations have also been revised to remove specific recommendations for the completed line-item construction project from which this project was originally funded. Existing conditions documentation and the general treatment recommendations were not revised to address changes made since 2005, or the impact of Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

Cultural Landscape Report for Fort Tilden, Site History, Existing Conditions, Analysis and Treatment, Gateway NRA

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