2016-6 Remembrances Special Edition1
City of Schertz
Remembrances Special Edition 2016-6
Presented by Schertz Historical Preservation Committee
Source: National Historic Preservation50 Web Site
National Historic Preservation Act turns 50
America’s relationship with its past changed fundamentally when President Lyndon Johnson
signed the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) into law and formally recognized
historic preservation as an important policy of the United States. These sentiments from the
Act still inspire:
The Congress finds and declares that (a) the spirit and direction of the Nation are founded
upon and reflected in its historic heritage; (b) the historical and cultural foundations of the
Nation should be preserved as a living part of our community life and development in order
to give a sense of orientation to the American people…
The American people took those words to heart in the last half-century, transforming their
communities from coast to coast through historic preservation and generated widespread
social and economic impacts. The NHPA established the legal framework and incentives to
preserve historic buildings, landscapes, and archaeology. These heritage resources shape
our sense of place, anchor economic revitalization, and ensure a more sustainable future
for our nation.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation identifies 15 million active local preservationists
and 50 million more individuals sympathetic to the cause of saving places that matter.
Today the National Register of Historic Places includes more than 1.7 million resources in
more than 89,000 listings. Historic districts large and small, urban and rural, provide
dynamic places for people to live and work. Millions of visitors from around the world visit
and enjoy places like Frank Lloyd Wright’s Falling Water, the French Quarter of New
Orleans, Buffalo’s Olmsted park system, prehistoric effigy mounds in Iowa, the Spanish
missions of California, Seattle’s Pike Place Market, the Pueblo of Taos, New Mexico, Martin
Luther King, Jr.’s church in Atlanta, and the Lolani Palace in Honolulu. Included are our
own Registry listing for Saint Joseph’s Chapel on FM 482 and the nearby Harrison House in
Selma.
The NHPA helps stabilize neighborhoods and downtowns, contributes to public education,
attracts investment, creates jobs, generates tax revenues, supports small business and
affordable housing, and powers America’s heritage tourism industry. Publicly owned historic
properties, from community landmarks to federal facilities and national parks, also maintain
community pride and identity and aid local and regional economies through their operation
and maintenance.
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Enacted after the destruction of numerous buildings and sites in the years following World
War II, the NHPA encourages Americans to identify and preserve our nation’s cultural and
historic resources. The law establishes a national preservation program and procedural
protections, including:
• The National Register of Historic Places, through which communities identify and
document significant historic and cultural sites to facilitate their preservation
• Federal preservation programs in each agency
• State historic preservation programs, and later through amendments, tribal and local
government programs
• The Section 106 Review Process, which requires the federal government to take
into account the effects of its undertakings on historic and cultural resources
• The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation to advise the President and
Congress and to collaborate with other government entities on historic preservation
opportunities
• The Historic Preservation Fund to provide grants to states, Certified Local
Governments, and Indian tribes for projects relating to historic preservation
• Public-private partnerships in support of common historic preservation goals