Counterpoint: Reconstruction Can Work!
Marty McCune, Historic Preservation Officer, City of Tucson

Reconstruction is a controversial and expensive means of interpreting historic buildings. However, if done properly and labeled appropriately, reconstruction can provide an experience for the visitor that other means of interpretation cannot. Size, scale, and use of materials can all be conveyed better by looking at an actual building than through photos, metal frames, or computer-generated images.

While Brooks is correct in that the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Reconstruction are usually applied to a missing part of a building such as a cornice or piece of trim, one of the Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties does address reconstruction of buildings or sites and provides guidance for how that should be accomplished. These suggestions include preceding reconstruction with thorough archaeology, as well as preserving remaining historic materials, features, and spatial relationships.

The National Park Service has completed at least one entire reconstruction that has been a resounding success - Bent's Old Fort in La Junta, Colorado, which was dedicated in July 1976, as part of the nation's two-hundreth birthday and the one-hundreth anniversary of Colorado statehood. Merrill J. Mattes, a Park Service historic interpretation specialist, wrote:

Detailed plans for the San Agustín Mission complex have not yet been formulated, but the intention is to provide a variety of means of interpretation of the different eras and resources available on this rich site. Recent excavations have uncovered evidence of habitation from 3,000 years ago, as well as use of the site in the late 1800s by Chinese farmers and the Carrillo family. Resources in various stages of preservation are present on the site - some may be interpreted through display of actual archaeological remains such as the perimeter wall of the mission complex. The Mission Gardens will be recreated by planting fruit trees and other crops that were grown when the mission was active. It is also possible that at least one pithouse will be "built" by constructing a wood frame and covering it with reeds to show the prehistoric architecture.

The other point about doing reconstruction on this site is that we have excellent information from diverse sources. Excavations in the mid-1950s documented the foundation and floor plan of the convento; photographs of the deteriorating building show size, location, and style of windows; and historical accounts provide us with still more information about the building. What the interior might have looked like is an area of some conjecture, though missions in Mexico had similar structures from which we can glean information. In addition, the surrounding open space provides a rare opportunity to re-create the environment around the building as part of the interpretive plan. Perhaps the most difficult issue is the intended use of the reconstructed building - as a museum with exhibits, as "house museum" with period furnishings, or as something altogether different, such as community meeting or event space. This will also affect the interpretation needed to convey the meaning of the structure.

There are many ways to interpret historical remnants - from exhibits to viewing actual artifacts to partial or complete reconstructions. Each way has its strong and weak points and will highlight diverse elements of the resource being interpreted. For the convento - different from what is available to be viewed at San Xavier - reconstruction can provide a unique experience to learn about this period of Tucson's rich history.