When you walk around places like Waterford, you can feel the history of the place. That is by design. The care and protection of historic areas like Waterford is called historic preservation. Historic preservation is largely agreed to be defined as the identification, interpretation, care of, and protection of historic artifacts and objects, sites, buildings and structures, landscapes, and districts. There are multiple different fields of preservation (that often intersect with other fields and interests) in which preservationists dive into that definition: including archaeology, architecture, museums, planning, building technology, advocacy, material culture, conservation, public history, and more. What the definition of historic preservation means and how they interpret it in their work can differ from preservationist to preservationist.
So, what does historic preservation mean to preservationists in Loudoun County? Below learn a little bit about the insights of what preservation means to them from Margaret “Margie” Salazar-Porzio, Ph.D. of Oatlands Historic House and Gardens, Ian MacDougall of the Virginia Piedmont Heritage Area, William Milone of Loudoun County Planning and Zoning, and Jana Shafagoj of Morven Park.
Margaret “Margie” Salazar-Porzio, Ph.D. is the Executive Director of Oatlands, a site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation in Loudoun County. With more than 15 years of experience in museums and public humanities, she previously served in leadership roles at the Smithsonian Institution, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. At Oatlands, she is leading a community-centered transformation focused on descendant engagement, education, land stewardship, and long-term sustainability.
What does historic preservation mean to you?
“To me, historic preservation is about stewarding places in ways that protect their historical and cultural significance while also inviting active engagement, inquiry, and connection to the present. Preservation to me is about honoring the people and their lives that are embedded in a landscape, including those that are difficult or complicated. At Oatlands, preservation means holding complexity, centering descendant voices, and ensuring that the site remains relevant and meaningful to the communities it serves today and in the future. As stewards, we must treat the site as a shared inheritance that extends beyond any one generation. Our choices today must therefore be guided by the long view, made with the understanding that others will inherit this place and continue its care.”
How did you get interested in historic preservation?
“My path into historic preservation came through public history and museum work. I’ve spent my career thinking about how history is interpreted, who gets to tell those stories, and how institutions can better reflect the full American story. Working at places like the Smithsonian and now at Oatlands has deepened my belief in the power of place: that historic sites are not simply lovely backdrops; they are places where civic learning, dialogue, and connection can unfold. With thoughtful interpretation, these places draw people into history as a lived experience, encouraging reflection and honest engagement with our shared past.”
Ian MacDougall joined the Virginia Piedmont Heritage Area in June 2021. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2017. After completing his degree, Ian worked for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s Military Programming department from 2017- 2021, focusing on organizing museum programming concerning Virginia’s role in the American War for Independence, as well as researching the experience of the British Army in the Commonwealth. Ian served as Public Programs Coordinator for VPHA from 2021-2025, managing the many public programs offered by the organization, including the popular Annual Conference on the Art of Command in the Civil War. He also served on the LoudounVA250 Committee in the role of Programs Chair from 2022-2025, having recently overseen the committee’s bicentennial commemorations of the Marquis de Lafayette’s visit in 1825. Ian became VPHA’s Executive Director in 2025, and oversees the Association’s daily business, development, fundraising, membership, and preserving the integrity of the historic landscape of the Virginia Piedmont Heritage Area. He and his wife Christine share a home in the bucolic village of Taylorstown in Loudoun County, and he spends his free time traveling to historic sites across Virginia and the east coast.
What does historic preservation mean to you?
“To me, historic preservation is the act of curating a living, outdoor museum where the landscape serves as the gallery floor and the structures act as its artifacts. Rather than just saving an old building simply because it’s been around a long time , it is about protecting the integrity of a site so that the relationship between the environment and its history remains visible and can be learned from. By treating a landscape as a museum, We ensure its exhibits are not obscured by modern encroachment but are instead maintained as immersive educational tools. To be able to take someone through a historic village, house, battlefield, or ancient road can and will inspire a sense of place and the moments in history it witnessed. There’s no better way to learn about ourselves and our history than to step into the places in which these events transpired and feel it around you.”
How did you get interested in historic preservation?
“I became engaged in history from a young age, from spending my time with my mother reenacting at Fort Loudoun State Historic Park in Tennessee. Sleeping in a wooden barracks building and watching muskets and cannons fired can do a lot to inspire curiosity in history. Growing up later in Williamsburg, I was surrounded by history and preservation. From my time in the Fife and Drum Corps, to some fantastic history teachers in school, and parents that fed that love of history, you could say there was little chance I wouldn’t pursue historic preservation as a career. I found a perfect home in the Virginia Piedmont Heritage Area in that way, matching my love of history with a passion to protect it for future generations.”
A local to this region, William Milone grew up in Alexandria’s Old and Historic District and fell in love with old places at an early age. William attended the University of Virginia (UVA) in Charlottesville, where he graduated with a Bachelors in Architectural History and a Masters of Architectural History. He lives with his wife Emily in Downtown Leesburg in a mid-19th century home.
What does historic preservation mean to you?
“To me, historic preservation- the effort to protect and interpret cultural resources in the face of visible and invisible change across society- is an imperative because it is the most socially responsible way to manage our constructed environment. Historic preservation offers people an immersive opportunity to understand their past, with physical evidence of past lives, cultures, social movements, wars, etc. to back up childhood history lessons. Preservation saves mountains of materials and energy by motivating us to reuse high-quality older buildings mostly produced with renewable, natural materials rather than replacing them with new buildings that may prove less physically durable or well-loved with time. Historic landscapes are an economic boon for local governments, and more importantly, create an irreplicable sense of place and quality of life for locals and visitors alike.”
How did you get interested in historic preservation?
“I grew up in an 1898 Queen Anne Victorian row house in the Old and Historic
District in Alexandria. For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved our old pine
floors with their rich wood grain pattern, the steep staircase with its decorative
newel posts and turned balusters, the door and window trim profiles that change
as you move up the house from floor to floor, and those wavy old window and
transom panes. My dad briefly worked in historic preservation locally and
remains involved at an advocacy level, so I was aware of the historic
preservation field from an early age. I’ve always cared deeply about historic
places and I knew I wanted to work in historic preservation just about as soon as
I realized I had the option.”
Jana Shafagoj holds a B.A. in Historic Preservation & History from Mary Washington College and a M.A. in Archaeology of Old Buildings from the University of York, UK. During her almost 30-year career, she has been lucky enough to explore, research, and preserve buildings throughout the Mid-Atlantic states and the UK. Jana accepted the Director of Preservation position at Morven Park in 2010 after being contracted by Morven Park in 2000 to determine the construction phasing of the Davis Mansion, a 6-month project, and again in 2009, to manage the Davis Mansion rehabilitation project. In her current role, Jana is responsible for the preservation of Morven Park’s historic structures and museum collections, and the interpretation of the site’s history to the public. She also manages Morven Park’s latest ground-breaking initiative, the 246 Years Project.
What does historic preservation mean to you?
“At its most basic, historic preservation is the study and protection of historic buildings. I don’t entirely agree with the word “preservation” which sounds like we are trying to stop all change and treat the building like an artifact in a museum, only to be carefully handled with white gloves. Instead, historic preservationists manage the evolution and adaptation of our built environment. As preservation professionals, we are called upon to identify the elements of each building that convey its history and must be maintained versus the ones that can be sacrificed to ensure the building’s continued relevancy to society. When properly done, historic preservation enables our historic built environment to continue to serve our community and remain a physical reminder of the community’s past for future generations. The old buildings and natural landscapes surviving within our communities allow us to subconsciously orientate ourselves in time and place, providing a sense of awe for the passage of time and a connection to our unique landscapes.”
How did you get interested in historic preservation?
“I love old houses. Ever since I was a kid, I have loved crawling around attics and cellars, looking for hidden rooms and old finishes. As I grew, this turned into a passion for understanding the evolution of our expectations for “home”. Although I appreciate buildings that have survived mostly untouched for a long time, I care more for the houses that have been shaped by each generation that called them home. Those buildings, like the Davis Mansion at Morven Park, are the ones where you find forgotten hidden spaces. That endless possibility of discovery is what I love most about this field.”
