Acorn Heritage Services
Nantucket, MA 02554
Acorn Heritage Services
is also able to provide
you or your clients several options for house histories, deed/family research
or "historic design" and site planning services. We will work
with private individuals to best understand their needs in uncovering
historical documents for house 
histories,
family genealogy, and deed research. We can work with companies and legal
professionals to undertake deed research for land transfers and court
cases. Finally we can also provide consulting support for homeowners,
architects, builders, and landscape architects to help them understand
the intricacies of designing additions, out buildings, driveways, and
gardens for historic buildings and sites (including sites without structures.)
House
Histories
House histories take a different approach than regular building surveys. These house histories are often intertwined with deed research, family genealogies, and visual history study. Our documents will be carefully composed with rich photographic elements, strong textual elements, and easy to read historical narrative. We take the same level of care with the historic research as we would with our building survey - but add a layer of creative design. A homeowner can rest assured that this document will be something to treasure.
Deed Research / Family Genealogy
Deed research can be an exacting science combined with the art (and luck) of historical research. We will be sure to take the time to carefully document the steps a property might take into the past. Connecting these dots through time can be difficult, when combined with the inaccuracies and writing styles of early manuscripts. Our staff has extensive experience with archives and archival records and will be able to navigate this spider web of information quickly.
Building
upon the knowledge of historical and archival research that is necessary
for deed research, our staff can help piece together your family history
or make the leaps necessary to find more information. Our staff is made
up historians and researchers who can be sure to follow the highest ethics
to uncover your family history. While genealogy often leads to dead ends
and strange tangents, you can be secure in the knowledge that we will
endeavor to do our best to uncover this family history.
Historic
Design & Site Planning
Acorn Heritage Services is
especially skilled at combining the needs of design and architecture with
historic buildings. We have experience with landscape architecture, garden
history, site planning, construction supervision, historic styles, and
sensitive additions. We can bring to your project a fresh eye at the way
that additions and renovations can be carried out without sacrificing
the history of the structure or site. While we have experience with the
historic structure, we can also advise and design for out buildings -
garages, small barns, and sheds - to fit in with the existing
structure. We can also provide site planning services - driveways,
gardens, fences, and walls - for all types of landscapes. Our landscape
analysis will allow us to bring elements that may exist or have existed
historically into your modern landscape. We are proud to be able to "read"
both rural and urban landscapes and tie in the necessities of each into
the design methodology.
Furthermore, we are well versed in local historical commissions and design review committees. We can bring our knowledge of these board to you and your clients. We have appeared in front of some of the largest commissions in the nation and have consulted for others. We can act as "witnesses" to these boards and provide documentation about the history and importance of historic buildings.