About

This platform is intended to fill a need.  

As a statewide coordinator of the National Register of Historic Places program, I regularly saw preparers of draft Register nominations struggle with the historical and architectural research needed to successfully get properties listed.  Just as disappointing were many of their efforts to complete research for Historic Structure Reports (HSRs), lengthy documents that require even more intensive examinations of properties' evidence from archival sources.

This prompted me to accept an invitation to teach archival research methods for architectural history students.  

However, I found I wasn’t reaching either the dedicated amateurs or professionals in the field who would be poised to put into practice the insights that I have gleaned over the course of my career.  

Perhaps the Internet can do that.  Hence, Advanced Old Building Research.  

Why “Old” and not “Historic”?  

Only about five percent of old buildings can qualify as “historic"—as defined by laws and local ordinances, but the research methods that work for historic buildings also work for those that are just "old."  

This is a new website, and it will take some time to populate it with the content that the subject deserves, so please be patient.

— Bob Craig

Robert W. Craig

Founder/Proprietor

May 2023

Q:  What kind of research does this website promote?

A:  There are various ways to study old buildings: through published sources, recordation with photographs and measured drawings, archaeological site examination, and forensically, by “reading" a building, with or without using advanced technological tools.  This website focuses on archival research, the study of unpublished written, graphic, and pictorial records, including historic photographs, that help bring together a deeper understanding of buildings as physical artifacts and through the human stories behind their creation, use, and evolution.  Archival research can be performed in isolation from these other methods, but is more powerful when carried out in conjunction with them.

Q:  What makes for “Advanced” research?

A:  Advanced research into old buildings more fully exploits the entirety of the written, graphic, and pictorial historical record.  There are more than 200 types of archival records that bear information useful to architectural historians and old-house researchers, but most of them are seldom or rarely (or never!) used.  That is a conclusion I came to over decades of reviewing the work of other architectural historians, from my responsibilities within the National Register of Historic Places program.  Using these records in intelligent combination permits the discovery of fuller and more satisfying findings about the identification, design, construction, occupancy, use, and evolution of old buildings, even about their removal and destruction.

Q:  Why are such types of records not more frequently used?

A:  The most important reason is that most researchers are unaware of the breadth of record types available to them, the information they contain and how to unlock it, and for what purposes such records should be consulted.  The answers vary record type by record type.  The records also vary in how they are distributed.  Many are scattered among different repositories or are in private hands.  How collections of records are arranged can also hinder their use.  Making effective use of such records depends on the ability to use them efficiently. Time for research is always in short supply.

Q:  Can you give me an example of a record type that is not frequently used?

A:  See the page about mechanic liens.

Q:  If I need advice about how to find the answer to a building-related research question, can you help?

A:  Yes, I’m willing to provide a limited amount of advice, for free.  Email your question to rcraig@advancedoldbuildingresearch.com  I will be sharing some of my research tips on the website, plus explanations of some of the little-used record types.  For more complicated or longer research needs, I will have a schedule of consulting fees.