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Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area is one of eleven winners this year of the Certificate of Merit Award winners selected by the Tennessee Historical Commission. The awards are presented each May during National Preservation Month.
Since 1975, THC’s Certificate of Merit Program has recognized exemplary work by individuals, groups, organizations, corporations, or governmental entities to further promote historic preservation or the study of history in Tennessee. Nominations are solicited from the public in December of the preceding year and judged by category. The Historic Preservation category recognizes excellence in the preservation, restoration, or rehabilitation of a historic or archaeological site, preservation leadership, preservation planning, publications related to historic preservation, public programming, or research.
Sycamore Shoals State Park was chosen for its historic paint finishes study, funded by a Historic Preservation Fund grant, that confirmed much of the Carter Mansion’s exposed interior surfaces are race and irreplaceable 18th Century finishes.
Others receiving the award were: Claiborne County Historical Society for completing a multi-hawed restoration of the 1819 Old Jai with HPF grand funds; the Dunbar Rosenwald School Foundation in Loudon for using a grant and rallying community partners to restore the roof and siding on a 1923 African American school building; John H. Allen Co. in Jackson for rehabilitation of the neon-lit landmark Art Moderne Greyhound Bus Station; Kemmons Wilson Co., Bologna Consultants, Bounds and Gillespie Architects and LRK Architects for rehabilitating a 1914 railroad station in Memphis with appropriately designed restaurant and gathering spaces; Walk-Off Properties, LLC and LRK Architects in Memphis for the rehabilitation of a 1924 Medical Arts Building now known as The Commonwealth for use as retail space with apartment and office spaces; Perry County for using HPF funds to clear invasive trees, vines, and lichen that threatened the structural integrity of the limestone battered walls that comprise the Historic Cedar Grove Furnace and Spring House; Friends of South Cumberland State Park near Tracy for creating a new interpretative area; Camille Vestment, visiting asst. professor of history at University of the South for archaeological research conducted at Grundy Lake coke overs in South Cumberland State Park; Timothy Henson in Adams for the preservation publication, the Adams Enterprise; Sam Hall in Chattanooga for  a digital preservation publication.
The THC also presented other achievement awards that did not satisfy all the criteria for a Historic Preservation Award.