Repurposing historical sites

After visiting Duncarrick Mansion a few weeks ago, I’ve been thinking about something.  Do we always need to preserve something historical in the exact same way that it was originally meant?  Or is it okay to deviate from its "historicness" in some circumstances? 

As you all know, I am from Xenia.  Starting in the 1840s, the railroads came to town.  First there was the Columbus and Xenia Railroad in 1844.  You can probably guess where it went.  The Columbus and Xenia merged with the Little Miami Railroad in 1868, which ran until it was combined with a lot of other railroads to form the Pennsylvania Railroad.  The Penn ran though Xenia nearly a decade untouched.  My grandfather actually worked on the Penn in the early 1950s, before it joined with New York Central to form Penn Central Railroad.  Penn Central later became Conrail and left town in the 1980s. 

Xenia Depot, ca. 1865

 

I know that was a lot of info, but there was a purpose to the madness.  With all of the railroads that ran through Xenia, lots and lots of railroad tracks were laid.  Once the trains stopped coming in the 80s, useless tracks littered the city.  Soon, however, the city got the bright idea to pull up the tracks and pave the lines, creating bike paths across town.  The bike paths get lots of use and many other nearby towns have followed suit.

 

For Xenia residents, there are two important historical events.  Nothing beats the '74 Tornado, but second must be the railroads.  Though they are gone, evidence of them remains.  People ride bikes where steam locomotives used to chug along and it has since become a part of the Xenia identity.

 

Sure, leaving the rails in place would have secured some sense of history, but in its new incarnations, the railroad lines are seeing use that is relevant to people today.  If the rails had been left in, they would have rusted, been subject to vandalism, and just gotten in everybody's way. 

 

Thinking outside the box on how to use or adapt historical sites is better than the alternative.  Honestly, what are the chances that Duncarrick Mansion would still be standing if the Ray Kroc Center hadn't turned it into an office building?  Every case will vary, but I think sometimes, it is okay to deviate from a site's historic use in order to preserve it and present it to modern audiences.