For Historic Preservation Advocacy
Matthew Brown received his Bachelor of Arts in History – with coursework in architectural history – from the University of Virginia, 1982. In the years since, Matthew has been an active leader in the field of historic preservation in Raleigh. He has written and published numerous works, including a building inventory of Historic Oakwood. This inventory included a carefully researched history and detailed architectural description of each house within the National Register Historic District. The author of numerous articles concerning the history and architecture within the Oakwood Historic District, Matthew also co-authored the Walking Tour Brochure of the Oakwood Historic District, published by the Society for the Preservation of Historic Oakwood, along with five volumes of North Carolina Troops 1861-1865, published by the NC Office of Archives and History.
Matthew took his passion for history and put it into practice by buying and restoring the 1909 Ogden-Kline House at 601 E. Lane Street where he currently resides. Original woodwork was repaired or replaced in-kind, a new wooden shake roof was installed, and a new kitchen and bathroom were designed to fit within the existing character of the historic house. Matthew also restored the 1924 Newsome-Jones House at 1326 Mordecai Drive, bringing the house back from a duplex to a single-family unit, removing later additions, and replacing modern fabric with period-appropriate fabric.
Matthew Brown has been a member of the Board of Directors for the Society for the Preservation of Historic Oakwood since 2003 and has served as its historian and Community Development Chair since 2007. In 2006, he was instrumental in saving the Wharton-Fields House, Boylan Avenue, from demolition by relocating it to 207 Linden Avenue, a project that was carried out under the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation, which was awarded tax credits by the State Historic Preservation Office. Matthew was also a leader in SPHO’s initiative to lend $97,000.00 toward the restoration of the 1851 Thompson-Anderson-Allen House, 516 E. Jones Street, after it had suffered a devastating fire in 2013, a project that won an Anthemion Award from Capital Area Preservation, Inc., that same year.
Matthew has also been actively involved in preservation issues throughout the community, having initiated five successful cases for enforcement of repairs to historic houses in a state of demolition-by-neglect within the Oakwood Historic District. He was a Commissioner on the Raleigh Historic Development Commission from 2009-2011, reviewing National Register nominations for six historic districts and numerous Certificate of Appropriateness applications. Matthew has also been a vocal leader and preservation advocate, giving tours of Historic Oakwood and lobbying for the preservation of houses throughout Raleigh. Most recently, Matthew purchased the Lamar-Brown House on Person Street from the State of North Carolina with the intention to restore it to its former glory, following many years of neglect.
The Board of Directors of Capital Area Preservation, Inc. is pleased to present a 2016 Anthemion Award to Matthew Brown for Historic Preservation Advocacy.