Hello everyone, my name is Caitlin Hucik and I am serving with PreserveWV Americorps at Cockayne Farmstead in Glen Dale, WV. My family roots lie in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia and Western Pennsylvania.  I am lucky enough to have been raised in two communities with rich history-Weirton, WV and Windber, PA.  From a very early age, I have been exposed to history -the perks of being a teacher’s daughter I suppose. So, working in a museum seems like second nature to me.

I received a Bachelor’s degree in communication from the University of Pittsburgh and a Master’s degree in public history from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and also spent time studying abroad on Semester at Sea through the University of Virginia.  Before moving to the Wheeling area, I worked at numerous museums in Johnstown and Somerset, PA.  My passions in life are travel, women’s history, and saving historic places so when I learned about PAWV’s AmeriCorps position I did not hesitate to apply.  Being able to return to my home state and share a piece of its history is a best-case scenario.

The Cockayne Farmstead, originally called Glendale Farm, is a circa 1850 farm house.  The Cockayne family came to West Virginia in the 1790’s and built a prosperous sheep farm by the 1890’s.  Their American Marino sheep where sold as far away as Australia and their wool won a bronze medal at the Philadelphia Exposition in 1876.  The family was influential locally as well; the Cockayne women were talented musicians and artists while the Cockayne men ran for political office and contributed to the commerce of Marshall County.  Their stories combine to create a colorful history, one which I am privileged to learn and share with others.

My goals for this year are to build the volunteer base at Cockayne, organize and repair over 12,000 primary documents, and create the first temporary exhibit focusing on the Cockayne women.  I am thrilled to be serving at such an interesting site and I look forward to the rest of my year here.

This service initiative is administered by the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia, the statewide grassroots nonprofit dedicated to the support and promotion of historic preservation in the Mountain State.  The PreserveWV AmeriCorps members develop and participate in a variety of community projects related to historic resource improvement, historic preservation, heritage tourism development, and nonprofit organizational capacity building.  For more information, visit www.pawv.org.  PreserveWV AmeriCorps is funded in part by Volunteer West Virginia, the state’s Commission for National and Community Service, and by the Commission for National and Community Service.

Purchase one for yourself, and send one as a gift! The cost of the booklet is $10 plus $2.50 for shipping and handling.

There are two ways to purchase the booklet:

•  Buy online via PayPal (HERE)
•  Send your check to:
  Preservation Alliance of West Virginia
  421 Davis Avenue, #3
  ​Elkins, WV 26241

Join Main Street Morgantown at Barnes & Noble (3000 University Town Centre Dr.) from Friday, December 13 – Sunday, December 15 for the Barnes & Noble Bookfair Supporting Main Street Morgantown. For every customer that mentions Main Street Morgantown’s name prior to making a purchase during these days, Barnes & Noble will donate 20% of the proceeds to MSM.

At 1:00 p.m. this Saturday, December 14th, Main Street Morgantown has arranged for Lynn Stasick, PAWV Statewide Field Services Representative, to host a preservation talk at Barnes & Noble. The talk will give a brief overview of preservation related topics, followed by a Q & A. Lynn has created a list of his favorite preservation books, including A Field Guide to American Houses, Old House Dictionary: An Illustrated Guide to American Domestic Architecture 1600-1940, Historic Preservation: An Introduction to Its History, Principles, and Practices, and Nearby History, Exploring the Past Around You, which will be available for purchase at Barnes & Noble during the event.

Lynn works with the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia to provide on-site assistance with needs assessment, redevelopment, sustainability plan creation, funding source identification, and preservation project grant-writing assistance. For more information about Lynn and his preservation activities, please visit PAWV’s website http://www.pawv.org/newhire.htm.
​
MSM, Monongalia Arts Center, Barnes & Noble, and PBS have also partnered to provide an array of other events throughout the three day event. These events will encompass activities focusing on topics including Downtown Abbey, historic preservation, poetry, prose, and a children’s art activity.

Main Street Morgantown, a tax exempt not-for-profit organization, is dedicated to the betterment of Morgantown’s Downtown and Wharf Districts through thoughtful revitalization. MSM focuses on creation of a safe and welcoming physical design in the district; active recruitment, retention and promotion of the district; preservation of local history through architecture and design in the district; and achievement of a vibrant and successful business community through partnership with local stakeholders, both public and private. For more information please visit our website or Facebook at http://www.downtownmorgantown.com or http://www.facebook.com/mainstreetmorgantown.

I have experience in digital marketing, event planning, archaeology, volunteer management, copy editing, and web content development. Ultimately, my goal is to pursue a master’s degree in cultural resource management.
​
I am thrilled to be serving at Main Street Morgantown (MSM), the most decorated Main Street in West Virginia. MSM won the Great American Main Street Award in 1998 and has won over 80 individual, committee and project State awards in the past 23 years. In addition to helping with Small Business Day, Chocolate Lovers’ Day, MedExpress Kids’ Day, Art is Food, Arts Walk, and the many other events MSM hosts in Downtown Morgantown and the Historic Wharf District, I will be dedicating a lot of my time to revamping and marketing the Historic Downtown Morgantown Audio Walking Tour and establishing the Downtown and Historic Wharf Districts as a cultural district. Overall, I can’t wait to learn more about wild and wonderful West Virginia and the beautifully historic town of Morgantown.

This service initiative is administered by the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia, the statewide grassroots nonprofit dedicated to the support and promotion of historic preservation in the Mountain State.  The PreserveWV AmeriCorps members develop and participate in a variety of community projects related to historic resource improvement, historic preservation, heritage tourism development, and nonprofit organizational capacity building.  For more information, visit www.pawv.org.  Preserve WV AmeriCorps is funded in part by Volunteer West Virginia, the state’s Commission for National and Community Service, and by the Commission for National and Community Service.