HISTORIC BUILDINGS LEND SOUL TO COMMUNITIES

Building on our future depends squarely on the past. Often overlooked in this retrospect are hundreds of irreplaceable historic buildings and sites that make our community unique.

This is National Historic Preservation Week. Perhaps one exercise we should all consider this week is taking the time to examine our historic treasures in the eyes of a first-time visitor. Cape Girardeau is home to a bounty of marvelous old buildings and sites -- many restored, others just waiting to return to the days of glory. Too often we hurry by these gems of the past, unseeing.

Cape Girardeau is fortunate to have a number of organizations -- both public and private -- leading the charge to preserve our past, including the Historic Preservation Commission and the Historical Association of Greater Cape Girardeau. Southeast Missouri State University also boasts one of the few historic preservation programs in the nation. Its Center for Regional History is also active in documenting local history.

These many groups have planned a busy week as a way to build awareness. Activities include a walking tour of Cape's Broadway business district and College Hill, and well as several informational programs. A wooden platform is being constructed inside Academic Dome to allow public viewing during a Thursday meal. The Glenn House will host a progressive dinner Saturday.

John Schneider, chairman of the city's Historic Preservation Commission, is fond of a 1963 quote from the New York Times which says, "We will probably be judged not by the monuments we build, but by those we have destroyed." He feels it has some relevance to Cape Girardeau and we agree. Historic preservation must go beyond mere regret. When we lose valuable historic buildings, the city loses some of its assets.

We're glad to see a renewed interest in neighborhood associations. The notion of preserving local history can't be mandated from above. Preservation surely begins at home.

It's not just structures that must be preserved. Old Lorimier Cemetery is a good example of history worth saving. Last year this plot earned the Historic Preservation Commission's first designation as a local landmark.

This cemetery was laid out in 1806 by Cape Girardeau founder Louis Lorimier and the oldest marked grave is that of Lorimier's first wife, who died March 23, 1808. There are some 1,200 tombstones in the cemetery, although it's believed there may be upwards of 8,000 actual graves.

Efforts by the commission to finance and build a security fence around the cemetery have paid off. More than $19,000 was raised for the fence, and since its installation acts of senseless vandalism in the cemetery have all but disappeared.

Historic preservation doesn't come cheaply. It takes a commitment of time and dollars by individuals and the community at large. Consider the beautifully restored Glenn House. Certainly it shines as a prime example of local historic preservation efforts. But preservation doesn't end with restoration.

The house has many continuing needs. Both the front and back porches are badly in need of repairs. But the Glenn House relies on volunteers and donations. And that leaves little money to initiate repairs to the Reynolds House.

"It's your memory. It's our history. It's worth saving." This is the theme of this year's preservation week. They are words worth remembering.

Without preservation efforts, more of the city's historic buildings and sites will simply fall into disrepair. It's time we all took a hand in saving these memories and places for future generations.