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2005
NCSHPO Awards for Excellence in Historic Preservation
Elbert Hilliard, former Mississippi
SHPO in the category of Lifetime Achievement
in recognition of a current SHPO, Deputy SHPO, or SHPOffice staff
person who has made a significant, long-term (20 years or more)
contribution to historic preservation.
After thirty-nine years
of service to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History,
Elbert R. Hilliard retired December 31, 2004. Elbert had an extraordinary
impact on historic preservation in Mississippi. He enjoyed enormous
stature and credibility among the state’s elected officials,
who demonstrated their respect for him by strengthening the state’s
preservation laws, establishing and funding a series of preservation
grant programs, and struggling to fund the Department adequately
even during the state’s fiscal crisis. Hilliard was equally
well regarded by the many thousands of citizen preservationists
around the state who saw Mississippi’s preservation movement
thrive under his leadership. Elbert Hilliard is one of the most
important figures in the history of historic preservation in Mississippi.
Hilliard was hired by
the Department in 1965 and was appointed director of Mississippi’s
newly created historic preservation program in 1968. In 1973 he
became Department director and state historic preservation officer.
Even before taking the helm of the Department, Hilliard had played
a significant role in shaping public policy in Mississippi. In
1970, while serving as director of the Division of Historic Sites
and Archaeology, Hilliard worked closely with the Mississippi
Legislature to secure passage of the State Antiquities Law. Although
this law proved a major benefit to preservation in Mississippi,
Hilliard recognized that stronger legislation was needed. Over
the next decade he worked to persuade legislators to improve the
law. Finally in 1983, the State Antiquities Law was amended to
clarify and strengthen its provisions. The amended State Antiquities
Law is widely recognized as one of the strongest state preservation
laws in the country.
Hilliard’s effectiveness in administering
the many programs of the Mississippi Department of Archives and
History equaled his success in shaping public policy in the state.
MDAH flourished under his leadership. When he became director
in 1973, the staff comprised 51 people and the annual budget was
less than one million dollars. By the time he retired, the Department
employed more than one hundred fifty people and operated on an
annual budget of more than eleven million dollars. When Hilliard
became director of the Historic Sites Division, the Department
administered only one historic property: the Old Capitol. MDAH
now administers seventeen historic properties, six of them National
Historic Landmarks. Seven of these properties are operated by
the Department as fully-interpreted historic sites, attracting
thousands of visitors per year.
Even in the midst of the Department’s
remarkable growth, Hilliard never lost sight of the importance
of strengthening the state’s grassroots preservation movement.
He traveled frequently to attend dedicatory ceremonies, speak
to civic clubs, and meet with community preservation organizations.
People in Mississippi who are involved in preservation know Elbert
Hilliard and consider him a friend. He was as attentive to them
during his tenure as director as he was to the legislators who
fund the Department’s programs. When a group of preservationists
came together in 1991 to establish a statewide nonprofit preservation
organization, the Mississippi Heritage Trust (MHT), they turned
to Hilliard for help. He worked tirelessly to encourage people
around the state to join MHT, he reached out to the African-American
Historic Preservation Council, which has now joined forces with
MHT, and he personally raised many thousands of dollars for the
fledgling organization.
Perhaps Hilliard’s single greatest
contribution to the grassroots preservation movement was his leadership
in establishing the Department’s preservation grant programs.
Since 1993, the Mississippi Legislature has funded a series of
grant programs designed to support local governments and nonprofit
organizations in preserving and interpreting historic properties.
Over the past decade, the Department has awarded or administered
nearly thirty million dollars in grant funds for the preservation
of courthouses, historic schools, history museums, and other historic
sites. Hilliard was instrumental in persuading legislators to
fund these programs, which have galvanized local preservation
efforts across Mississippi. Hilliard also played a leading role
in persuading the Mississippi Legislature of the need to acquire
and protect the state’s Civil War properties. Using federal,
state, and private funds, the State of Mississippi has acquired
hundreds of acres of nationally significant Civil War battlefield
lands and initiated a statewide Civil War Trails program.
Elbert R. Hilliard has devoted his career
to promoting historic preservation in Mississippi. His legacy
is unmistakable: strong and effective preservation laws on both
the state and local levels, a state historical agency that has
earned national distinction, and a flourishing grassroots preservation
movement.
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