National Trust for Historic Preservation

Overview

The National Trust for Historic Preservation aims to empower local preservationists by providing leadership to save and revitalize America's historic places, and by working on both national policies as well as local preservation campaigns through its network of field offices and preservation partners, including the National Park Service, State Historic Preservation Offices, and local preservation groups.

The National Trust is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with field offices in Boston, New York City, Charleston, Nashville, Chicago, Houston, Denver, Boise, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Canby (near Portland, Oregon), and Seattle. The organization is governed by a board of trustees and led by current president, Stephanie K. Meeks. The National Trust presently has around 750,000 members and supporters.

In addition to leading campaigns and advocacy, the National Trust provides a growing educational resource through the Preservation Leadership Forum that offers articles, journals, case studies, and conferences and training. The National Trust issues the quarterly Preservation magazine and produces the "PreservationNation" blog, which features stories about people and places in the wider preservation movement.

The National Trust’s current work focuses on building sustainable communities through the adaptive reuse of historic spaces; preserving and empowering cultural diversity through protecting sites of cultural significance; advocating for greater stewardship of historic places on public land; and leading innovation in the management of historic properties.

History

Towards the end of the 19th century, as the United States was rebuilding after the Civil War, the country was beginning to form its sense of national identity and history. The government began to enact legislation for the preservation of sites and objects deemed significant to the nation’s history. In 1872, an Act of Congress established the first National Park, Yellowstone. In 1906, the Antiquities Act enabled the President to declare landmarks or objects as a national monument. Then in 1935, Congress passed the Historic Sites Act which outlined programs for research and inventory of historic sites.

Meanwhile, historic preservation initiatives existed on local and state levels. In 1931, the first historic district was created in Charleston, South Carolina. However, efforts to save and maintain historic sites were still largely limited to private citizens or local groups.

In the late 1940s, leaders in American historic preservation saw the need for a national organization to support local preservation efforts. In 1946, David E. Finley, Jr., George McAneny, Christopher Crittenden, and Ronald Lee met at the National Gallery of Art to discuss the formation of such a national organization. This meeting was followed by a larger gathering on April 15, 1947, attended by representatives from a number of art, architectural, and historical societies, which culminated in the creation of the National Council for Historic Sites and Buildings. The meeting’s attendants became the first charter members of the Council. The organization’s first headquarters was in the offices of Ford’s Theatre (Lincoln Museum) in downtown Washington, D.C.

The Council then pursued the formation of a National Trust for Historic Preservation, somewhat modeled on the British National Trust, which would be tasked with the acquisition and maintenance of historic properties. The creation of the National Trust was proposed as a bill to Congress, H.R. 5170, introduced by Congressman J. Hardin Peterson of Florida and passed.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation was formally established through the Act of Congress when President Harry S. Truman signed the legislation on October 26, 1949. The charter provided that the Trust should acquire and preserve historic sites and objects of national significance and provide annual reports to Congress on its activities. Finley served as the National Trust's first chairman of the board, remaining in the position for 12 years.

The National Trust and the National Council existed side by side for several years until the need to merge resources compelled the Executive Committee to integrate the two entities. In 1952, the boards of both organizations approved a merger of the Council into the National Trust. The merger was effective the following year and was completed by 1956. The National Trust became a membership organization and assumed all other functions of the National Council.

In its early years, the National Trust’s founders envisioned an organization whose primary purpose would be the acquisition and administration of historic sites, while encouraging public participation in their preservation. In 1957, the National Trust officially acquired its first property, Woodlawn Plantation in northern Virginia. Since, the National Trust portfolio of historic properties and contracted affiliates include twenty-seven historic sites, ranging from the 18th-century Drayton Hall in South Carolina to the Modernist Glass House in Connecticut.

Over the next decade, the National Trust grew to become the leading national organization in historic preservation. They began working with citizens and city planning officials on legislative matters, including federal, state, and municipal ordinances for historic preservation. National Trust staff also traveled to parts of the country to advise local communities on preservation projects.

In 1966, Congress passed the National Historic Preservation Act, a significant legislation for the preservation movement. The Act also provided federal funding in support of the National Trust’s work. The funding later ceased in 1996, at which point the National Trust became entirely privately funded.

Following the adoption of the National Historic Preservation Act, the National Trust broadened in its mission beyond administrating historic sites. In 1969, the National Trust created the Preservation Services Fund to provide financial assistance to local preservation projects. In 1971, the National Trust opened its first field office in San Francisco. As the organization grew, the National Trust expanded its work, consisting of programs, educational resources, and advocacy. In 1980, the National Trust initiated the National Main Street Center, specializing in revitalizing historic business districts, which has since transitioned into a subsidiary.

In 2010, Stephanie Meeks became the organization’s president, replacing Richard Moe who had led the organization for 17 years. The change brought a shift in direction of the National Trust’s work towards a more focused, cause-based approach and involved more robust outreach to local preservationists. As part of this new approach, the National Trust initiated the National Treasures portfolio that specifically identifies threatened sites and strategizes efforts to preserve them.

In 2013, the National Trust headquarters moved from the Andrew Mellon Building on 1785 Massachusetts Avenue, NW in Washington D.C.’s Dupont Circle to the historic Watergate office complex. Regarding the move, Meeks said in a statement, "The selection of the Watergate demonstrates our ongoing commitment to recognizing and protecting important places from every era in American history, including the recent past."

Currently, the National Trust’s programs include National Treasures, launched in 2011, which campaigns to save threatened historic landmarks, and the annual list of America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places, first issued in 1988, which highlights endangered sites across the country.

National Treasures

Initiated in 2011, the National Treasures program identifies historically significant landmarks that face imminent threat. With the support of local preservationists, the National Trust leads direct action to save these sites through fundraising, coalition building, and legal advocacy. The sites are selected based on criteria including: integrity, contribution to America’s diverse history, and preservation strategies that can be applied to other sites.

The growing portfolio of National Treasures includes the Astrodome in Houston, Texas; Miami Marine Stadium in Miami, Florida; Fort Monroe in Hampton, Virginia; Historic Wintersburg in Huntington Beach, California; and the historic Rosenwald Schools built in the early 19th century to educate African-American children.

11 Most Endangered Historic Places List

First published in 1988, the National Trust’s list of 11 Most Endangered Historic Places is an annual list that highlights endangered historic sites across the United States. The list serves to raise national awareness of these sites. The sites are nominated by the public and eventually selected based on a range of factors, including its significance, whether there is a local group engaged in its preservation, the urgency of the threat, and potential solutions to that threat.

The 2014 list included:

Preservation Leadership Forum and resources

The Preservation Leadership Forum is a network of preservation leaders—professionals, students, volunteers, activists, and experts—who share ideas, information, and advice, and have access to in-depth preservation resources and training. Forum members benefit from the quarterly Forum Journal, an all-digital journal of in-depth articles on preservation practices and issues; the Forum Focus series, which presents reports on innovative preservation research and practices; the Forum Bulletin, a weekly electronic communication; the Forum Reference Desk, that supplies information, referrals, and tools; and Forum Online, a searchable database of best practices and case studies in preservation. The Preservation Leadership Forum also maintains the "Preservation Leadership Forum" blog that publishes features, news and analysis, as well as articles and commentary from Forum members.

As part of its educational mission, the National Trust offers conferences and training programs. Its biggest conference is the annual National Preservation Conference, the largest gathering of preservation professionals and those interested in preservation in the United States. Held in different cities each year, it annually attracts over 2,000 attendees to a week-long series of field sessions, education workshops, and tours that examine critical issues in the field of historic preservation. The Conference also has a Diversity Scholarship program which seeks to enrich the work of community leaders from diverse social, economic, racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds.

Other conferences and training include the National Main Street Conference, which focuses on preservation-based commercial district revitalization; the Preservation Leadership Training; and educational programs at National Trust sites.

Historic Hotels of America

Historic Hotels of America identifies hotels that have maintained their authenticity, sense of place, and architectural integrity. The program includes over 260 members in 44 states, including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation created Historic Hotels of America in 1989 with 32 charter members.

To be included in the program, hotels must be at least 50 years old; designated by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior as a National Historic Landmark or listed in or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places; and recognized as having historic significance.

Advocacy

The National Trust’s advocacy arm works to effect policy at the local, state, and federal level. Current advocacy priorities are:

Historic Tax Credit (HTC) and the Creating American Prosperity through Preservation (CAPP) Act

The Historic Tax Credit (HTC) is the federal tax credit program that incentivizes the rehabilitation of historic buildings. The HTC, which has rehabilitated more than 38,700 buildings and leveraged about $106 billion in private investment nationwide, is in danger of being eliminated in current budget-balancing discussions in Congress. The National Trust and its partners advocate for the Creating American Prosperity through Preservation (CAPP) Act to preserve the tax credit policy.

Federal transportation legislation

The federal Department of Transportation Act of 1966 included Section 4(f), which stipulates that planners must develop projects that protect or avoid historic resources. However, Section 4(f) is periodically challenged through the transportation reauthorization process, most recently during the consideration of MAP-21. Due to work by preservationists, Section 4(f) remains intact.

Public lands

The National Trust advocates for the preservation of historic and cultural resources on federal public lands, partnering with the Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service, and the National Park Service. The National Trust supported the Green Mountain Lookout Heritage Protection Act, a bill that would prevent the United States Forest Service from removing a building from the Glacier Peak Wilderness Area in Washington State unless the agency determines that the structure is unsafe for visitors. The National Trust stating that it was "pleased that Congress has acted to protect this historically significant and locally cherished landmark. With this vote, the House joins the Senate in affirming that the preservation of this historic resource is compatible with wilderness protection."

National Trust Historic Sites

The National Trust portfolio of historic sites contains National Trust owned-and-operated sites (stewardship sites), sites owned but not operated by the National Trust (co-stewardships), and contracted affiliates.

Stewardships

Sites owned and operated by the National Trust:

*President Lincoln's Cottage is owned by the Armed Forces Retirement Home, but operated by the National Trust via a cooperative agreement.

Co-stewardships

Sites owned or leased by the National Trust and operated by an independent nonprofit organization:

Contracted affiliates

Sites neither owned nor operated by the National Trust but are included by cooperative agreements:

Subsidiaries

Affiliated Companies of the National Trust