Wright Brothers National Monument Historic Resource Study

Chapman, William; Hanson, Jill

This study documents historic buildings, structures, and other resources within the Wright Brothers National Memorial, located in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. It has been conducted in compliance with Sections 106 and 110 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, and as set out in 36 CFR Parts 63 and 800. It has been undertaken as part of a cooperative agreement between the University of Georgia Research Foundation and the Southeast Region of the National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Department of the Interior (Cooperative Agreement Number 5000-8, Sub-Agreement Number 5). The study includes a detailed inventory of historic buildings, structures, and sites in accordance with recognized survey procedures as set out in the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Identification and Evaluation (FR, No. 190, Sep. 29, 1983, pp. 44,720 - 44,726) and, most recently, in National Register Bulletins 15, 16, 18, and 21. An immediate product of the survey is an updated set of List of Classified Structures (LCS) forms for the Park together with completed state inventory forms on each property. Completed LCS forms and photographs are submitted with the study. Additionally, the study includes physical descriptions, historical background information, and assessments of significance, as well as management recommendations. Information provided in this study will be used to update National Register documentation for the park district. The Scope of Work described in NPS Cooperative Agreement No. 5000-8-8009, Sub-Agreement No. 5, entitled “Southeastern Park(s) Inventory” called for “a comprehensive inventory of all standing structures constructed before 1950” within a number of parks in the Southeast Region. It also called for updated LCS forms and state inventory information sheets, as well as National Register nominations for eligible properties. Additionally, the Scope called for an overview of historic cultural resources in each park, a discussion of relevant historic contexts and associated properties or property types, as well as management recommendations. Reference to landscape features is also specified in the Scope of Work. This report meets the requirements set out in the Scope of Work, and in many ways extends beyond the original Scope. In the case of the Wright Brothers National Memorial, a number of structures and features postdating 1950 have been inventoried and assessed. Although the 1959-1960 Wright Brothers Memorial Visitor Center and the 1963 First Flight Airstrip are not presently considered eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, both may be at a future date. The study includes a historic base map for the Wright Brothers National Memorial in order to place each resource within an overall geographical context. U. S. Geological Survey maps are also provided. Resources have been documented with two to four photographs (with more extensive photographic coverage for many of the properties).

Wright Brothers National Monument Historic Resource Study

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