Collins selected as superintendent of New Philadelphia National Historic Site

By Editor | April 8, 2024 |

By DAVID CAMPHOUSE

Christopher Collins

The National Park Service (NPS) announced last week that it has selected Christopher Collins as the superintendent of the newly established New Philadelphia National Historic Site located near Barry.

Collins is currently the superintendent at Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park in Missouri. He will assume his new role at New Philadelphia later this spring.

“I am pleased to name Chris as the first superintendent of New Philadelphia National Historic Site,” said NPS Midwest Regional Director Bert Frost.

“He has a proven track record of being a great community steward and partner and is seasoned in developing new units of the National Park System into successful operations. These qualities make him well suited to set New Philadelphia up for a promising future and I know Chris is up for the challenge.”

New Philadelphia National Historic Site was established to commemorate the history of early 19th century Black pioneers in Illinois. This was the first township known to be officially registered by an African American. It became the 424th park of the National Park System in December of 2022.

Collins brings over 20 years of National Park Service experience. He began his career working at Glacier National Park in Montana.

He would go on to lead information technology for eight parks in the Upper Columbia Basin Network and serve as the administrative officer at the Nez Perce National Historical Park in Idaho.

He also served as the chief of business and commercial services at Indiana Dunes National Park where he was responsible for leading a group of administrative professionals responsible for Pullman National Monument, Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, Hopewell Culture National Historical Park and William Howard Taft National Historic Site in addition to Indiana Dunes.

In 2019 he took on his assignment as the first permanent superintendent at Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park where he continued to establish and grow that operation into a successful, fully operational unit of the National Park System.

New Philadelphia Association (NPA) board member Marynel Corton said that she believes Collins’s experience in establishing the Ste. Genevieve National Historic Site from the ground up will prove to be a great asset as New Philadelphia is established as a National Historic Site.

“It was very nice to know that he worked at a brand new park at Ste. Genevieve,” Corton said.

Corton also expressed relief that the National Park System chose to hire a superintendent whose sole charge will be the New Philadelphia site.

“The other thing people will want to know is that he will be superintendent of our site, and he won’t be over New Philadelphia and a group of other sites,” Corton said.

Collins stated in an NPS release that he looks forward to the opportunity to establish New Philadelphia as a National Historic Site.

“I am looking forward to working with the community and our partners to tell the story of this extraordinary place and fulfill the enabling legislation that has made New Philadelphia possible” Collins said.

“I am so impressed by the commitment of the surrounding community, including so many local advocates, who have worked tirelessly to ensure the preservation of the special history that happened here.”

Collins graduated from Pittsburg State University in southeast Kansas with a Bachelor of Arts in French Language and Literature, as well as History in 1999. In 2003, he graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Information Systems.

Collins enjoys hiking, traveling, home renovation, and is a self-proclaimed foodie. Collins, his partner Jim, and cat Lucy are looking forward to their new adventure.

Corton indicated that Collins is expected to take on his new duties by the end of May.