Dr. Peter Dedek
Peter is a historian and interior designer. He holds a doctorate in history with an emphasis in historic preservation from Middle Tennessee State University and received his master's and bachelor's degree in interior design from Cornell University. He also holds a Certificate in historic preservation from the University of New Orleans.
As a tenured professor at Texas State University in San Marcos he holds a dual appointment between the Department of History and the interior design program. He teaches graduate courses in historic preservation and architectural history and, at the undergraduate level, has taught a number of interior design studios, American history, and the history of architecture and interior design.
His most recent book, The Cemeteries of New Orleans: A Cultural History (State University of Louisiana Press 2017), discusses the cultural and social history of the historic cemeteries of New Orleans and addresses issues in preserving these fragile resources. He has also written Historic Preservation for Designers (Fairchild Books, 2014), a textbook on historic preservation, and Hip to the Trip: a Cultural History of Route 66, (University of New Mexico Press, 2007), a history of Route 66 and a discussion on the reasons why the road is so famous.