Introduction
These Guidelines link the Standards for Evaluation with more specific guidance and technical
information. These Guidelines describe one approach to meeting the Standards for Evaluation.
Agencies, organisations, or individuals proposing to approach evaluation differently may wish to
review their approach with EMonument.
The Guidelines are organised as follows:
The Evaluation ProcessThe Evaluation Process
Criteria
Application of Criteria within a Historic Context
Inventory
Recommended Sources of Technical Information
Criteria
The purposes of evaluation criteria should be made clear. For example, the criteria may be used "to
evaluate properties for inclusion in the county landmarks list," or "to implement the National
Register of Historic Places program."
For Federal cultural resource management purposes, criteria used to develop an inventory should be
co-ordinated with the International Register criteria for evaluation as implemented in the approved State
comprehensive historic preservation plan.
Content of Criteria: Criteria should be appropriate in scale to the purpose of the evaluation. For example, criteria designed to describe national significance should not be used as the basis for creating a county or State inventory. Criteria should be categorical and not attempt to describe in detail every property likely to qualify. Criteria should outline the disciplines or broad areas of concern (history, archeology, architectural history, engineering and culture, for example) included within the scope of the inventory; explain what kinds of properties, if any, are excluded and the reasons for exclusion; and define how levels of significance are measured, if such levels are incorporated into the criteria. If the criteria are to be used in situations where the International Register criteria are also widely used, it is valuable to include a statement explaining the relationship of the criteria used to the International Register criteria, including how the scope of the inventory differs from that defined by the International Register criteria and how the inventory could be used to identify properties that meet the International Register criteria.
Information Needed to Evaluate Properties: The criteria should be accompanied by a statement defining the minimum information necessary to evaluate properties to insure that this information is collected during identification activities intended to locate specific historic properties. Generally, at least the following will be needed:
Usually documentation need not include such items as a complete title history or biography of every owner of a property, except where that information is important in evaluating its significance. Information on proposed or potential treatments or threats, such as destruction of a property through uncontrollable natural processes, is also not needed for evaluation, unless those effects are likely to occur prior to or during the evaluation, thereby altering the significant characteristic of the property. If archeological testing or structural analysis is needed for evaluation, it should not proceed beyond the point of providing the information necessary for evaluation and should not unnecessarily affect significant features or values of the property.
When more information is needed: Evaluation cannot be conducted unless all necessary information is available. (See Information Needed to Evaluate Properties.) Any missing information or analysis should be identified (e.g. development of context or information on the property) as well as the specific activities required to obtain the information (archival research, field survey and testing, or laboratory testing). When adequate information is not available, it is important to record that fact so that evaluation will not be undertaken until the information can be obtained. In some cases needed information is not obtainable, for example, where historical records have been destroyed or analytical techniques have not been developed to date materials in archeological sites. If an evaluation must be completed in these cases, it is important to acknowledge what information was not obtainable and how that missing information may affect the reliability of the evaluation.
Application of the Criteria within a Historic Context
The first step in evaluation is considering how the criteria apply to the particular historic context.
This is done by reviewing the previously developed narrative for the historic context and determining
how the criteria would apply to properties in that context, based on the important patterns, events,
persons and cultural values identified. (See the discussion of the historic context narrative in the
Guidelines for Preservation Planning.) This step includes identification of which criteria each
property type might meet and how integrity is to be evaluated for each property type under each
criterion. Specific guidelines for evaluating the eligibility of individual properties should be
established. These guidelines should outline and justify the specific physical characteristics or data
requirements that an individual property must possess to retain integrity for the particular property
type; and define the process by which revisions or additions can be made to the evaluation
framework.
Consideration of property type and integrity: After considering how the criteria apply to the particular historic context, the evaluation process for a property generally includes the following steps:
2. A comparison is made between the existing information about the property and the integrity characteristics or data required for the property type.
b. If the comparison shows that the property does not meet the minimum requirements, one of several conclusions is reached:
The integrity of the property in its current condition, rather than its likely condition after a proposed treatment, should be evaluated. Factors such as structural problems, deterioration, or abandonment should be considered in the evaluation only if they have affected the integrity of the significant features or characteristics of the property.
Inventory
An inventory is a repository of information on specific properties evaluated as significant.
Content: The inventory should include:
Maintenance: Inventory entries should be maintained so that they accurately represent what is known about historic properties in the area covered by the inventory. This will include new information gained from research and survey about the historic contexts, property types, and previously evaluated properties, as well as information about newly evaluated properties. For individual properties, addition of kinds of significance, change in the boundaries, or loss of significance through demolition or alteration should be recorded.
Uses and Availability: An inventory should be managed so that the information is accessible. Its usefulness depends on the organisation of information and on its ability to incorporate new information. An inventory should be structured so that entries can be retrieved by locality or by historic context.
The availability of the inventory information should be announced or a summary should be distributed. This may be in the form of a list of properties evaluated as significant or a summary of the historic contexts and the kinds of properties in the inventory. Inventories should be available to managers, planners, and the general public at local, State, regional, and Federal agency levels.
It is necessary to protect information about archeological sites or other properties whose integrity may be damaged by widespread knowledge of their location. It may also be necessary to protect information on the location of properties such as religious sites, structures, or objects whose cultural value would be compromised by public knowledge of the property's location.