In 2003, CCHS began a survey of Penns/Brush Valley to determine its qualifications for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, the country's most prestigious record of historic resources. It is one of the ways in which a rural landscape can be given enhanced protection, particularly from state and federal transportation projects through Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. A National Register listing recognizes unique historic and cultural resources and encourages the preservation of agricultural land, open space, architectural resources, archaeological sites, and less commonly identified resources - hedgerows and vistas.
After several months of identifying, evaluating, and documenting the valley, a large packet of information was submitted to the Pennsylvania Bureau of Historic Preservation (BHP). The material, assembled by Jackie Melander, Sally McMurry, Beth Ricker and Brenda Alexander, with help from Cecilia Rusnak and a class of Penn State landscape architecture students, included photographs and narratives providing a physical description of the valley and its historical significance. The material was reviewed by BHP staff members and also by members of the state's Preservation Board, and a site visit was made to evaluate and determine the National Register nomination boundaries. As a result of these efforts, Penns/Brush Valley has been declared eligible for listing - the first step in enhancing the preservation of this unique Centre County rural historic landscape, one of the few of its size remaining in Pennsylvania. Work will continue over the next several months to complete the full nomination. We thought you might be interested in a couple of excerpts from the preliminary survey.
What Makes Penns/Brush Valley Special?
The natural context of the Ridge and Valley landscape played a significant role in the cultural development of Penns Valley and Brush Valley, Centre County, Pennsylvania. Early paths and later roads were located along the fertile limestone valley floor, or through ridges cut by gaps. Fast moving streams or underground fed springs provided the water resources needed for the settlement of crossroad communities. And the agricultural landscape of the valley was, and still is, defined by the vertical edges provided by the forested mountains. A great deal of the proposed district's historical vernacular landscape fabric is still intact within the natural context. Agricultural patterns still persist and are visible on the landscape - farms delineated by historic hedgerows; crop lands and open fields framed by old roads; and the views and vistas from the valley and the ridges that reflect nineteenth and early twentieth century features.
National Significance of Penns/Brush Valley
The rural landscape in Penns Valley and Brush Valley, Centre County, PA is clearly related to important currents in the state's economic and social history. More specifically, agriculture in central PA - and, thus, the rural landscape itself - was initially shaped by the presence of local markets (first the iron industry, later by State College) and by the institution of share tenancy. From early on, the local ironworks supplied important markets for beef, pork, feed grains, and hay. They also likely contributed to the high level of mechanization in the valleys.
A substantial portion of farmers, perhaps as many as 30% to 50%, were actually tenants, farming on shares. By the mid-19th century, a mixed grain-and-livestock economy had taken root, and this was the staple of agricultural production in the valleys well into the twentieth century. By the 1930s, State College became a major local outlet, and its rural environs became part of Eastern urban milksheds. Tenancy, however, outlasted the iron era and persisted to the very end of the period of significance. The significance of the extant historic rural landscape in these interconnected valleys is twofold: first, in the extent to which it conveys this agrarian past, and second, in its high level of integrity.
