I found out a week or so ago that I will be receiving the Charles E. Peterson Fellowship Award from the Society of Architectural Historians at the conference in Detroit. What this means me to me is far much more than I can explain.

Charles E. Peterson was as some have written, "The champion of the American Preservation movement", he worked in the renown Department of Preservation at Columbia University and dedicated his career to the thought and education of preservationists in America.Peterson was the founder of the Historic American Building Survey, which I had the opportunity of working with last summer. He was also a Fellow of the American Institute of
Architects. He was a founding member of the APT or Association for Preservation Technology, which is one of the paramount professional Associations for preservationists today that publishes a journal that is at the forefront of preservation research and development.

Charles E. Peterson donated most of his papers, research and books to the University of Maryland where there is an archive named in his honor. A truly great figure in terms of the amount of work he did in America so we could have proper documentation and records of the built environment.

(Charles E. Peterson circa 1976)

Being named the recipient of this award will give me the opportunity to publish a series in the Buildings of the United States series, which will help me to build my resume. This is without a doubt one of the biggest opportunities I've had in terms of getting my name out into the academic realm, and perhaps the break I need in order to secure a spot in a Ph.D. program this fall. Understanding that this honor is being given in the name of one of the nations most notable historian/preservation/architects makes the award that much more important to me.