Perkasie Park Named To National Register Of Historic Places
PERKASIE, PA. Sept. 8, 2016. For the first time in more than five years, the National Park Service has added a Bucks County property to the National Register of Historic Places: the Victorian camp-meeting grounds and cottages at Perkasie Park.
Edson Beall, the historian for the National Park Service, made the announcement on September 8, 2016.
Perkasie Park becomes the 160th property in Bucks County to be named to the National Register. In 1966, Washington’s Crossing State Park and Andalusia were the first county properties named to the Register; in April 2011, the Quakertown Historic District was the most recent honoree.
To be known as the Perkasie Park Historic District, the privately owned facility on Ninth Street in Perkasie becomes the second National Register property in the Borough, joining the 1832 South Perkasie Covered Bridge.
“I am grateful for the recognition by the National Park Service of the Park's historically significant past. The Park's founders and the many generations of cottagers who have gone before us would be delighted by this honor,” said Frank Pezzanite, president of the Perkasie Park Association. “The designation of the Park as a Historical District will help it survive intact for generations to come.”
The park’s researchers first starting working on the nomination process in May 2014, in conjunction with Wise Preservation of Chester Springs, Pa.
Perkasie Park is one of a handful of intact camp-meeting facilities that continue in operation in Pennsylvania. It has had summertime religious services since 1882, and Perkasie Park’s historic outdoor auditorium has hosted secular public events for the past 134 years.
The facility has 66 buildings, including 60 Victorian cottages. The Park Service found 63 of the 66 structures were contributing historic structures.
The Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Board unanimously had approved the Perkasie Park nomination in February 2016.
Perkasie Park, founded in 1882, was recognized as a significant property associated with the American camp meeting movement of the late 19th and early 20th Century, and for its design and architecture.
During the Victorian era, Perkasie Park was the second biggest public attraction in Bucks County, next to the annual county fair, and at its peak, the Park’s camp meeting had 23,000 visitors, with 2,000 teams of horses, at its 1890 Sunday camp meeting. It also served as an important train and trolley destination for the growing Borough.
In 2015, Perkasie Borough recognized Perkasie Park as a historic structure, and its nomination to the National Register was supported by U.S. House Representative Michael Fitzpatrick, Pennsylvania state Representative Craig Staats, former state Representative Paul Clymer, and the Bucks County Board of Commissioners.
The National Register of Historic Places was established in 1966 to help coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect our historic and archeological resources.
For More Information, contact:
Frank Pezzanite
President, Perkasie Park Association
[email protected]
Edson Beall, the historian for the National Park Service, made the announcement on September 8, 2016.
Perkasie Park becomes the 160th property in Bucks County to be named to the National Register. In 1966, Washington’s Crossing State Park and Andalusia were the first county properties named to the Register; in April 2011, the Quakertown Historic District was the most recent honoree.
To be known as the Perkasie Park Historic District, the privately owned facility on Ninth Street in Perkasie becomes the second National Register property in the Borough, joining the 1832 South Perkasie Covered Bridge.
“I am grateful for the recognition by the National Park Service of the Park's historically significant past. The Park's founders and the many generations of cottagers who have gone before us would be delighted by this honor,” said Frank Pezzanite, president of the Perkasie Park Association. “The designation of the Park as a Historical District will help it survive intact for generations to come.”
The park’s researchers first starting working on the nomination process in May 2014, in conjunction with Wise Preservation of Chester Springs, Pa.
Perkasie Park is one of a handful of intact camp-meeting facilities that continue in operation in Pennsylvania. It has had summertime religious services since 1882, and Perkasie Park’s historic outdoor auditorium has hosted secular public events for the past 134 years.
The facility has 66 buildings, including 60 Victorian cottages. The Park Service found 63 of the 66 structures were contributing historic structures.
The Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Board unanimously had approved the Perkasie Park nomination in February 2016.
Perkasie Park, founded in 1882, was recognized as a significant property associated with the American camp meeting movement of the late 19th and early 20th Century, and for its design and architecture.
During the Victorian era, Perkasie Park was the second biggest public attraction in Bucks County, next to the annual county fair, and at its peak, the Park’s camp meeting had 23,000 visitors, with 2,000 teams of horses, at its 1890 Sunday camp meeting. It also served as an important train and trolley destination for the growing Borough.
In 2015, Perkasie Borough recognized Perkasie Park as a historic structure, and its nomination to the National Register was supported by U.S. House Representative Michael Fitzpatrick, Pennsylvania state Representative Craig Staats, former state Representative Paul Clymer, and the Bucks County Board of Commissioners.
The National Register of Historic Places was established in 1966 to help coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect our historic and archeological resources.
For More Information, contact:
Frank Pezzanite
President, Perkasie Park Association
[email protected]