San Esteban Del Rey, Pueblo of Acoma in Acoma New Mexico/NPS

The National Park Service, in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, is now accepting applications for $5 million in matching grants to support the preservation of nationally significant historic properties and collections through the Save America’s Treasures program.

The Save America’s Treasures program is funded through the Historic Preservation Fund using revenue from Outer Continental Shelf oil releases, not tax dollars, and requires dollar-for-dollar private matching funds. The program began in 1999 and has leveraged over $315 million in federal appropriations to attract $377 million in private investment to help communities preserve nationally significant properties and collections across the country, creating more than 16,000 jobs along the way.  

“Through these competitive matching grants, the National Park Service and our federal, state, tribal, local government, and nonprofit partners are helping communities preserve some of our nation’s most important historic places and collections,” National Park Service Deputy Director Michael T. Reynolds said. “By doing so we are saving these sites and stories for future generations.”

Save America’s Treasures has assisted more than 300 National Historic Landmarks, 28 properties contributing to NHL historic districts, over 250 buildings individually listed in the National Register of Historic Places, over 70 properties contributing to National Register historic districts, as well as hundreds of nationally-significant collections in museums across the country. 

The program requires applicants to raise project funds from other sources to “match” the grant money, which is awarded after a competitive review of project proposals. Successful grantees must provide dollar-for-dollar match, meaning for each federal dollar put towards the project, at least one non-federal dollar must also be used. Buildings and collections which have previously received Saving America’s Treasures grants are not eligible to receive a second grant for the same building or collection.

The Save America’s Treasures program was established by in 1998 and co-founded with the National Trust for Historic Preservation and carried out in partnership with IMLS, NEA, and NEH with the objective of preserving nationally significant historic properties and museum collections for future generations of Americans. In 2014, the American Architectural Foundation became the official nonprofit partner of the Save America’s Treasures program. The NPS and the AAF work together to tell the stories of the program’s projects and their importance and impact on communities around the country. For a list of all previously funded Save America’s Treasures projects, view the AAF treasure map at: http://www.archfoundation.org/category/save-americas-treasures/

Applications for funding are now being accepted through Grants.gov. Eligible projects include the conservation of collections and physical preservation work to historic buildings. All projects must be nationally significant; meaning listed as National Historic Landmarks or at the national level of significance in the National Register of Historic Places, or a case made for a collection’s national significance.

The deadline for applications through Grants.gov is February 21, 2018 (11:59 p.m., EST). More information, including grant application materials, is available on the grant program website: https://go.nps.gov/sat