2 Jan 2025

Inventory and Evaluation of 12 Miscellaneous Buildings for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) at Custer Hill Area, Fort Riley, Kansas: Volume 1

Abstract: The US Congress codified the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (NHPA), the nation’s most effective cultural resources legislation to date, mostly through establishing the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The NHPA requires federal agencies to address their cultural resources, which are defined as any prehistoric or historic district, site, building, structure, or object. Section 110 of the NHPA requires federal agencies to inventory and evaluate their cultural resources, and Section 106 requires them to determine the effect of federal undertakings on those potentially eligible for the NRHP. This two-volume report documents an architectural survey of 12 miscellaneous buildings and structures constructed from 1960 through 1976 in the Custer Hill area at Fort Riley, Kansas. Volume 1 includes an analysis of the eligibility of these buildings and structures to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and satisfies Section 110 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended. Volume 2 contains individual building inventory forms, and its access is controlled by Fort Riley for security reasons. During the covered period, Fort Riley’s primary mission was training recruits for deployment to South Vietnam. As a result, the relevant theme developed for determining historical significance for these 12 buildings at Fort Riley is Recruit Training for Ground Combat in Vietnam. Of the facilities inventoried, none achieved significance under this theme for Criterion A. These buildings do not embody a distinctive characteristic of a type, period, or method of construction, do not represent the work of a master, and do not possess high artistic value under Criterion C. Therefore, no buildings were determined to be eligible to the NRHP. This work fulfills Section 110 requirements for these buildings.

2 Jan 2025

Assessing the Validity and Accuracy of Wetland Indicator Status Ratings for Eight Species in Alaska Subregions

Abstract: Preexisting ecological information and plant species occurrence data were used to determine the accuracy and validity of the present regional and subregional wetland indicator status ratings for eight species: Andromeda polifolia, Arctous rubra, Carex canescens, Rhododendron tomentosum, Rubus arcticus, Salix arctica, Salix pulchra, and Viola palustris. Technical documentation was developed to either (1) support the current National Wetland Plant List (NWPL) subregion boundaries and wetland indicator status ratings for the NWPL Alaska Region or (2) support a proposed change to the subregions or wetland indicator status ratings for the NWPL Alaska Region, for inclusion into the next NWPL update. The project developed repeatable, quantitative methods for assignment of wetland indicator status rating. Analyses included multiple correspondence analysis (MCA), analysis of similarities (ANOSIM), nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMDS), and principal component analysis (PCA). Prevalence index (PI) was used as a numeric approximation of wetland status for comparing observations across subregions. A pilot study on S. pulchra data evaluated regional assignments by machine learning and assessed the feasibility of correlation network analysis and Louvain clustering for wetland indicator status rating assignment as dictated by co-occurring species. The methods developed for this Alaska-specific study may be applied to any future regional or subregional updates to the NWPL.