Preserving Historic Rural Properties: Helping Owners Help Themselves

Rural historic properties are threatened by both insufficient owner resources and external development pressures. Even in jurisdictions with strong protections for historic sites, property owners are often ill-equipped to address the restoration and maintenance requirements of the structures in their stewardship. A variety of onsite income-producing uses could help rural historic properties be self-supporting, but little guidance exists to help owners determine what uses are most appropriate to their situation. By referencing the available literature and examining the successes and failures at three case study properties, a set of reuse feasibility factors are identified that can form the basis for guidance usable by rural historic property owners. While this research can be applied broadly, a series of recommendations specific to Prince George’s County, Maryland, shows how reuse feasibility guidance can not only help property owners but also advance a jurisdiction’s historic preservation agenda.