White House historian William Seale will give a lecture next week at the University of Richmond on the White Houses and presidents during the Civil War. Seale, who is the author of “The President’s House: A History,“ will discuss on Thursday Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis and the White Houses in which they lived. The focus of the talk is social and cultural history of the two presidents, not just the Civil War.

Archaeologists have pulled a 400-year-old slate tablet from what they think was an original well at Jamestown, a historic preservation group announced yesterday. The slate is covered with faint inscriptions of local birds, flowers, a tree and caricatures of men, along with letters and numbers, according to Preservation Virginia, which jointly operates the dig site with the National Park Service. It was found May 11 at the center of James Fort, which was established in 1607 and makes Jamestown the first permanent English settlement in North America.

The 107-year-old mansion with its three stucco-covered stories is nestled against Catoctin Mountain and is a charming reflection of the Old South. But look inside and the ravages of time and neglect are apparent: Peeling paint. A leaky rooftop. A marble fireplace, chipped away by vandals. The nonprofit group Preservation Virginia recently placed the mansion, known as Selma, on its Historic Endangered Sites List. It’s a symbolic gesture that doesn’t protect the house from being demolished or decaying further, but conservationists hope the move will shine a spotlight on the mansion.

History is repeating for a statewide preservation organization that has shortened its brand name for the second time in 120 years. APVA Preservation Virginia, founded in 1889 as the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, will now promote itself as Preservation Virginia. The change was adopted March 2 along with the launch of a new logo and Web site, http://www.preservationvirginia.org.

Preservation Virginia is accepting nominations for its 2009 Virginia’s Most Endangered Historic Sites list. The list is issued annually to raise awareness of Virginia’s historic sites at risk from neglect, deterioration, lack of maintenance, insufficient funds, inappropriate development or insensitive public policy. Virginia’s Most Endangered Sites list has served as a powerful wake-up call since 2000, alerting people to historic treasures in trouble and serving as a catalyst in the effort to save them,“ said Elizabeth Kostelny, executive director of Preservation Virginia. “This list has helped bring valuable attention to some very significant pieces of Virginia’s heritage,—but our work is far from done. Important historic sites are still in danger, and we must continue to protect the places that tell Virginia’s story, and ultimately America’s story.“