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Florida. Office of Secretary of State. --Office of General Counsel.
Title, Dates:
Mission San Luis litigation background and research files, 1992-2002 (bulk 2000-2002).
Amount:
1 cubic ft.
Medium Included:
Organization/Arrangement:
Arranged by subject.
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Terms Governing Use:
Biographical/Historical:
Mission San Luis was the capital of the western missions in Florida from 1656 to 1704. Populated by more than 1,500 residents, including one of the most powerful Apalachee chiefs and the Spanish deputy governor, San Luis was one of early Florida's largest colonial outposts. San Luis was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1960. Since that time, the mission has been the focus of intensive archaeological and historical research, and today it is the most thoroughly investigated mission in the southeastern United States. Mission San Luis was purchased in 1983 by the State of Florida and is co-managed by the Department of State's Bureau of Archaeological Research and the Museum of Florida History. In October 1999, the Division of Historical Resources began the reconstruction of five major timber frame structures at the San Luis Archaeological and Historic Site in Tallahassee: the Church, Chief's House, Council House, Covento and Cocina. The intent was to construct these structures as closely as possible to their original historic character, abandoning some modern building techniques in favor of ancient building methods while still meeting local building codes. Three of these structures were completed in December 1999.
Reconstruction of these buildings was supposed to follow the "Secretary of the Interior's Standards and Guidelines for Archaeology and Historic Preservation," which provides federal and state agencies, state historic preservation officers, and other organizations with guiding principles for archaeological and historic preservation activities and methods. These standards and guidelines, which are consistent with internationally accepted preservation principles and standards, deal with preservation planning; identification, evaluation, and registration of cultural assets; historical, architectural, engineering, and archaeological documentation; and treatment of historic properties.
On or about April 2001, termite infestation was observed at the reconstructed Mission Church. Upon closer inspection, severe wood rot was also observed on wood posts that had been embedded into the ground in November 1997. The wood rot condition was determined to be a more severe problem and threatened the structural integrity and life expectancy of the building. The reconstructed buildings were closed to the public.
As a result of the improper construction techniques, deterioration of ground contact wood needed to be arrested and damaged wood structural members needed repair. Projects were initiated to provide a comprehensive assessment of the condition of each structure and analysis of possible corrective measures, including repairing and/or rebuilding damaged structural members and preventing further deterioration.
Summary:
This series documents investigative and legal actions taken in regard to complaints against parties responsible for significant damage to five reconstructed buildings at the Mission San Luis historic site: the Church, Council House, Chief's House, Covento and the Cocina. The series includes correspondence, reports, and reviews of damage to the 17th century historic reconstruction project; reports on building failures; Inspector General reports related to moisture and insect (termite) damage, as well as any preliminary and tentative findings; newspaper articles about Mission San Luis construction, reconstruction and code violations; research on arsenic leaching from pressure-treated wood and wood preservatives, soil testing and building inspections; and purchase orders and job qualifications for professional structural engineering personnel and services.
Finding Aids:
Folder listing available. 0
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Electronic Records Access:
Subject Access Fields:
Florida. Dept. of State. San Luis Mission (Tallahassee, Fla.) United States. Dept. of the Interior.
Construction industry Florida Historic preservation Florida --Tallahassee Missions Florida
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