Selected Historic Preservation Sites

Annotations from Parade Magazine and the National Trust for Historic Preservation May 8, 2005.
  • National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP) www.nationaltrust.org. Founded in 1949, the privately funded, nonprofit NTHP coordinates a wide variety of preservation programs. Among it’s national initiatives are Preservation Month, the National Main Street Center and the Center for Preservation Leadership. NTHP also offers help to individuals and groups interested in preserving a site in their community, and publishes Preservation magazine, which is free to members. Each year, the NTHP identifies the “11 Most Endangered Historic Places” in the U.S.
  • For a special minisite which includes the downloadable “Be A Backyard Historian” toolkit, click here.
  • The History Channel: Save Our History
    www.saveourhistory.com Created by The History Channel, Save Our History is a national education program that involves students in local preservation projects. Youths work side-by-side with preservation professionals to rehab and salvage treasures in their community.
  • Save America’s Treasures www.saveamericastreasures.org A public/private partnership between the National Park Service and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Save America’s Treasures is “dedicated to the preservation and celebration of America’s priceless historic legacy.” The group has designated more than 1000 Official Projects that are key to America’s cultural, political, scientific and architectural history. The program provides technical assistance and funding to specific preservation projects.
  • Preserve America www.preserveamerica.gov First Lady Laura Bush chairs this preservation initiative, created in 2003 by the White House. Preserve America’s annual Presidential Awards honor four outstanding groups, businesses, government agencies or individuals for preservation work in their community. The group also has designated more than 240 municipalities as official Preserve America Communities, which recognizes their efforts to save local historic sites and encourage heritage tourism. Preserve America also offers grants of $10,000 to $100,000 to “projects that preserve and use important historic resources for promotion of heritage tourism and other economic revitalization projects.”
  • National Register of Historic Places www.cr.nps.gov/nr A program of the National Park Service, the National Register of Historic Places contains approximately 78,000 listings. Each site has been chosen for its significance to American history. The designated landmarks include buildings, archeological sites and cultural landmarks.
  • HGTV: Restore America www.hgtv.com Restore America provides grants to nonprofit preservation groups and public agencies across America. This year, the program is funding residential restoration projects, and HGTV will tell the stories of the winning sites on air and on its Web site.
  • PreserveNet www.preservenet.cornell.edu Maintained by Cornell University, PreserveNet provides links to resources that address preservation legal issues and economics and links to sites with job opportunities for those interested in preservation work. It also lists conference and education information, as well as awards and scholarships for students in the preservation field.
  • PreservationDirectory.com www.preservationdirectory.com Founded in 2000 in Portland, Ore., by preservation professional Tim Canaan, PreservationDirectory.com is a one-stop source of links to cultural and historic conservation groups across the nation. The site features a bulletin board of upcoming events and conferences; a directory of historic inns, bed and breakfasts, and hotels; an architectural styles guide; a historic theaters directory; links to educational programs; a directory of state historic preservation offices; and much more.
  • The Online House Detective: Architectural Clues www.house-detectives.co.uk/arch_clues.htm Learn how to tell a home or building’s history using architectural clues.
  • Instructions for Gravestone Rubbing (in PDF format) www.genevahistoricalsociety.com The Geneva Historical Society of Geneva, N.Y., offers simple instructions on how to make gravestone rubbings.
  • Civil War Preservation Trust www.civilwar.org The trust is the leading nonprofit organization working to preserve Civil War battlefields, promote heritage tourism and educate the public about the history and impact of the Civil War.
  • American Battlefield Protection Program www.cr.nps.gov/hps/abpp Part of the National Park Service’s Heritage Preservation Services division, the American Battlefield Protection Program raises awareness about the need for preservation of U.S. battle sites. The program offers matching funds to groups that are working to save battlefields and educate the public about the nation’s military heritage.
  • Cinema Treasures www.cinematreasures.org Founded in 2000 by two dedicated movie lovers, Cinema Treasures aims to save the grand old movie palaces of Hollywood’s golden age. The site includes a theater guide of more then 9400 classic movie theaters around the world, news updates and preservation alerts, and also lists related events.
  • The Garden Conservancy www.gardenconservancy.org According to The Garden Conservancy, “more than two-thirds of great American gardens have already been lost to the tides of time.” The nonprofit conservancy provides legal, financial and horticultural help to individual garden owners, as well as public and private organizations, to ensure each garden’s future and to make it permanently accessible to the public.