Presenters: Laura Thoms, Archivist and Collection Manager, Oak Hill Cemetery; John Matteo, Matteo Ferran Structural Engineers
Since its founding, Oak Hill has been the final resting place of historical personages from government, business, politics, the arts, law, and the military, and interments continue today. Located along Rock Creek in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, DC, the Cemetery was established in 1849 on land contributed by W.W. Corcoran, founder of the Riggs National Bank and the Corcoran Gallery of Art. The grounds were laid out by Captain George F. de la Roche in the style of a garden park cemetery, and James Renwick, Jr. designed the Cemetery’s stone gates and its historic Chapel. After a brief history of the cemetery, this talk will highlight the preservation challenges on this site. When Archivist Laura Thoms left working at the Library of Congress to start the Archives at Oak Hill in 2023, she thought that she would be solely managing the book and paper records of individuals interred at Oak Hill. After six months she realized that the “collection” was also all of the trees and landscape, all of the monuments and buildings, and all of their related documents. This talk will cover how her landscape, building and monument documentation projects to fill gaps in the Archive also supported the restoration of the 28th St Gate, the Linthicum Mausoleum, and a 2025 DOI Save America’s Treasures grant to restore the Renwick Chapel. Featured projects will also shed light on connections between Oak Hill and the art and architecture in the federal buildings of Washington, DC.
John Matteo of Matteo Ferran Structural Engineers will also be speaking about the restoration of the severely damaged Linthicum Mausoleum.
If the date permits, the talk will include Lisa Fager, Executive Director of the Black Georgetown Foundation, to discuss the shared research between Oak Hill Cemetery and the neighboring Mt Zion Female Union Band Society Cemeteries, and the preservation challenges faced by this important African American Cemetery.
One (1) AIA general CEU available.
Historic buildings throughout the greater Washington region often incorporate structural framing systems and exterior wall assemblies that are unfamiliar to today’s building design and construction professionals. Such systems present unique challenges when considering proper building maintenance, proposed alterations, and system performance. This presentation will discuss several of the common archaic structural systems that are often encountered in the greater DC region. The speakers will discuss how the archaic system works, what typical problems are encountered, and how the system can be altered or repaired to accommodate renovations and improvements. Light refreshments will be provided.
Please RSVP by Monday, 17 August 2026.
One (1) AIA HSW Credit is pending.
EverGreene Architectural Arts is pleased to host a half-day workshop designed to provide participants with an understanding of the process of plaster conservation and restoration, from conditions assessment through materials analysis and repairs. The proposed curriculum includes types of plaster, processes of making plaster, typical deterioration patterns, methodologies for documentation and conditions assessments, diagnostic procedures and non-destructive evaluations, material properties and stabilization and repair techniques.
The theoretical content will be combined with hands-on activities where workshop attendees will watch and engage in plaster making and repair. The session will cover decorative plaster replication and repair and will provide hands-on experience with mixing and applying flat plaster finishes.
Studio tours will be given by EverGreene following the workshop, which will showcase current projects.
Arrive by 10:30a, lunch provided.
Please email info@aptdc.org if you have any special dietary requirements.
Four (4) AIA LU | HSW Credits are pending for this event. Please select this during registration and provide your AIA #.
APT DC is pleased to announce a call for submissions for an exhibition of works of art as part of our 2026 annual symposium. We invite submissions of original works of visual art that highlight the remarkable historic resources in our region.
While the theme of the symposium is Adaptive Reuse: Policy In Practice, the works of art are not required to conform to this theme, although this is encouraged.
At a minimum, they should represent a historic site in the APT DC region, which is defined by Washington, DC; all of Virginia; all of Maryland; all of West Virginia, and Sussex County, DE.
Suggestions for how to highlight the historic sites include:
Theme: Historic Sites of the APT DC Region
Submission Deadline: August 21, 2026
Show Date: September 11, 2026
Disciplines: All visual media. Audio media not allowed.
Eligibility: Open to all experience levels.
Physical size/format restrictions: Works of art must be limited to 24” x 24” x 12" maximum (including frame) and should be of a format to sit on a table or easel. If digital media is submitted, the artist is responsible for supplying their own device to show the media. The artist is responsible for providing their works as intended for display, including framing.
Submission Method: Submit digital images (max. 10 MB each) and a brief artist statement (200 words maximum) below.
Prizes: APT DC 2026 Symposium attendees will vote for their favorite works. Three winners will be selected to receive a free 1-year individual membership ($40 value) and the top vote getter will also receive a free registration to the 2025 annual holiday party (approx. $80 value).
Artwork Drop-off: September 11, 2026, 8:00am, at Alexandria History Museum at the Lyceum.
Artwork Pick-up: September 11, 2026, 8:00pm, at King & Rye in Alexandria. Artists will not receive a free registration to the symposium. If you are not planning to attend the symposium happy hour, you must make other arrangements with APT DC.
SUBMIT HERE
The Washington, DC Chapter of the Association for Preservation Technology (APT DC) is pleased to announce its Fall 2026 Symposium. This year's theme is Adaptive Reuse: Policy in Practice.
Since its creation in 1976, the Federal Historic Tax Credit has shaped the nation’s built environment and changed how Americans view historic landmarks and neighborhoods. The federal historic tax credit, along with a number of state tax credits, has incentivized the reuse of historic buildings across the country.
Former warehouses, textile mills, railroad stations, firehouses, hospitals, banks, office buildings, and even gas stations have been saved from demolition and converted to new uses that continue to serve their communities. Thus, rehabilitation/adaptive reuse has become one of the most popular and visible aspects of historic preservation in the United States.
50 years later, the 2026 APT DC Symposium seeks to explore various aspects of the rehabilitation treatment’s theory and practice – through both its development and utilization over the past 50 years, but also its future application.
The symposium will include seven (7) paper presentations, a walking tour, and an optional happy hour.
This year's symposium is available for in-person and virtual attendees. A recording with most presentations will be provided to registrants upon request.
Agenda:
Welcome Remarks
Mike Davis, APT DC President
Zachary Burt, APT DC Symposium Committee Chair and Past President
Adaptive Reuse of the Annapolis Post Office
Christopher Brown, Ziger | Snead Architects, and Michael Zajac, SGH
Raising the Roof, Carefully: Rooftop Additions and the Standards in Washington
Emily Eig, EHT Traceries
Gilded Age Mansions for the 21st Century
Mary Kay Lanzillota and Nicole Mezydlo, Hartman-Cox Architects
LUNCH
Built for Industry, Rebuilt for Opportunity: Sustainable Adaptive Reuse of The Packing House
Ethan Marchant, Quinn Evans
Adaptive Use Strategies for Large-Scale Historic Industrial Campuses
Tom Liebel, Moseley
Preserving a Collective Memory: The Rehabilitation of Woodstock High School
Neal Wright, Glavé & Holmes Architecture
Smithsonian Castle Basement - from Utility to Community
Andrea Righi, Stantec
Closing Remarks
TOURS (Concurrent, Select 1)
Option 1: Adaptive Reuse Along the Alexandria Waterfront
Option 2: Adaptive Reuse in Old Town (King Street)
Happy Hour (Optional)
King and Rye, 480 King Street, Alexandria, VA
Registration Fees:
Registration includes full breakfast and lunch, AIA CEUs, APT DC swag, and a walking tour. A separate happy hour ticket includes drinks and light snacks.
Continuing Education: 6.0 LU/HSW AIA CEU credits are pending (5.0 for the presentation sessions and 1.0 for the walking tour).
Volunteer Cleaning Day at Oak Hill Cemetery (9/12): Join APT DC on Saturday, September 12th, for a volunteer cleaning event at Oak Hill Cemetery. 4.0 LU/HSW AIA CEUs are pending. For more information and to register: https://www.aptdc.org/event-6781427
Please contact symposium@aptdc.org if you have any questions.
This year our Volunteer Day will have two tracks:
- Track 1: Marker and Monument Cleaning: Learn about safe and effective restoration cleaning practices and help Oak Hill with maintaining their historic markers and monuments. Led by conservation professionals and product representatives.
- Track 2: Marker and Monument Documentation: Help a new Oak Hill Cemetery initiative to document their markers. Digital documentation and condition survey organized and led by preservation professionals.
Please choose your preferred track upon registration so we know how many to expect, but you can always switch your preferred activity day-of.
Four (4) AIA HSW CEUs pending.
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P.O. Box 9813 Washington, DC 20016
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