History

C&O Canal -- Lock 3 as it looked in 1900 and 2015

Overview

History is the study of the past through written records, oral accounts, and material objects. It allows us to constantly update and change our understandings of how we reached the present. The National Capital Region’s history program documents how and why national park sites formed and how they relate to major topics in American history, such as the Civil War and Reconstruction, Civil Rights, women's history, and environmental history. Research products include administrative histories, historic resource studies, and special history studies, some of which culminate in National Register nominations.

Contact

Please contact History and Culture Program Manager Joshua Torres for more information. If you need assistance from Resource Stewardship and Science (RESS), you may submit a Solution for Technical Assistance Requests (STAR) request online (NPS Only).

Links

• NPS Park History Program
• NPS Discover History website
• National Register of Historic Places Listings
• Select African American Oral Histories from NCR parks

Job Opportunities

Job Closed. The announcement for the Civil Rights Historian Position closed on August 11, 2023.

NCR Administrative Histories

Source: Data Store Saved Search 3804 (results presented are a subset). To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.

NCR Historic Resource Studies

Source: Data Store Saved Search 3657. To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.

NCR Special History Studies

Source: Data Store Saved Search 3803. To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.

NCR African American History Reports

Source: Data Store Saved Search 4855. To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.