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ARCHITECTURAL INFLUENCES 1780-1970 Fred Wagner, Architect, A.I.A.
As a community or a region grows and changes, many of the physical aspects of life disappear or are hidden away. The buildings we build and those our ancestors built before us, however, give excellent reflection of their time. Hancock County and its more heavily populated areas along the beachfront are rich in a heritage of buildings which reflect an unpretentious culture from the pre-territorial period to the present day.
Although some of our finest architectural legacies have been lost to hurricanes, fire or neglect there are many which still stand to give us clues to past cultural and aesthetic resources. If we think of "architecture" as the oppulent mansions of Natchez and Columbus, then we will be disappointed in structures we find in this community. But if simple buildings which are an honest reflection of needs, climate, finanicial resources and an unsophisticated life style, can be called "architecture" then there is much to see and to enjoy. As a professional architect I find a great deal to admire and to absorb not only from buildings but also from boats, bridges, cemetaries and other handcrafted reflections of the man-made environment.
The American Bi-Centennial celebration and other post Viet-Nam War influences have made Americans more nostalgic and interested in their past. All across the country there has been a growing interest in historic preservation and Mississippi is no exception. Natchez has long been viewed as an outstanding example of private preservation of historic architectural resources. The Mississippi Department of Archives and History has recently completed- the preservation of the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians and the first phase of a systematic restoration of Historic Jefferson College -the birthplace of Mississippi statehood. These projects have been considered among the finest public examples of their kind in the country.
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