PreservatiON Mass honors The Mount and Edith Wharton Restoration

Boston (April 21, 2003) -- PreservatiON MASS, the state's leading advocate for historic preservation, will present The Mount and Edith Wharton Restoration with its Charles W. Eliot II Preservation Award at its 15th Annual Preservation Awards Dinner in Boston on Thursday, May 1, 2003. The Preservation Awards Dinner, held at the historic Fairmount Copley Plaza Hotel, recognizes individuals and organizations whose extraordinary work has helped promote, protect and preserve the Commonwealth's historic and cultural resources.

Established in 1991, the Charles W. Eliot II Award honors exceptional vision and excellence in planning. Previous recipients include the Trust for Public Land (1996) and Mass MoCA (2000).

The Mount, in Lenox, Mass., is the 1902 estate and gardens designed by Edith Wharton, author of 40 books including the classics The House of Mirth, Ethan Frome and The Age of Innocence. Wharton was the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, as well as an influential authority on architecture, interior design and landscape gardening. The Mount is the only complete expression of her design theories. The non-profit Edith Wharton Restoration, Inc. has led efforts to restore of the estate, raising over $9 million to bring the mansion and gardens back to life.

"The Mount is the only U.S. site dedicated to Edith Wharton, one of the most influential and extraordinary literary figures of the late 19th and early 20th centuries," said Jim Igoe, Executive Director of PreservatiON MASS. "Since it was founded in 1980 Edith Wharton Restoration, Inc. has restored Wharton's vision to its former glory and made great strides to educate the public about this incredible historic property and the woman who created it. The restoration of the home's interior and exterior, as well as its beautiful landscapes, is testament to the organization's dedication, foresight and expertise."

"We are extremely grateful for this honor, and especially for PreservatiON MASS's dedicated efforts to preserve Massachusetts' historical treasures," said Stephanie Copeland, President of Edith Wharton Restoration

PreservatiON MASS also will be honoring The Cambridge Historical Commission and Charles Sullivan, with the Paul E. Tsongas Award for exceptional achievement in protecting the Commonwealth's historic and cultural heritage. The Cambridge Historical Commission, a department of the City of Cambridge, was established in 1963 to administer the city's historic districts, to survey Cambridge's architecture and publish its findings, and to research and mark historic sites and buildings.

The funds raised at the Dinner enable PreservatiON MASS to continue its advocacy and education programs.

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