Christopher Rizer Email & Phone Number

Chris' focus is historic preservation and heritage tourism, and the potential benefits of those fields to economically struggling areas like his home in Appalachia. His education includes extensive coursework in architectural history, historic preservation law, conservation, and related fields , and includes projects such as National Register nominations, architectural conservation assessments, and documentation of various historic resources. Since 2017, he has served as President of the Mason County Historical and Preservation Society, where he has had the opportunity to apply that education to his own community. The Society's recent projects include the successful fight to save the 1854 Mitchell Mercantile, which will be converted to the Society's headquarters, as well as documentation of the county's historic buildings and 500+ cemeteries. Most recently, he interned at Cane River Creole National Historical Park on their facilities management crew, where he assisted in project preparation and review, documentation of the Park's historic resources to National Park Service standards, and general maintenance throughout the park. This provided a good hands-on complement to his classroom education.