Documentation Studies
Not everything can be preserved as is — or at all.
Documentation studies record a property’s physical and historic characteristics to exacting archival standards. This saves information about the property even if it is demolished or substantially altered. Federal documentation programs include the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and the Historic American Landscape Survey (HALS). These collections are archived in the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Some states also have programs such as the Minnesota Historic Property Record, which is maintained by the Minnesota Historical Society.
Documentation projects have brought Hess Roise to some interesting places including a state prison, Grand Coulee Dam, and ore docks on Lake Superior. We have also worked on grain elevators, bridges, commercial and residential buildings, farms, and military facilities.