Park National Register Documentation

Dr. Turkiya Lowe, Chief Historian of the National Park Service (NPS) and Jeff Durbin, NPS Section 106 Compliance Program Manager, are the Deputy Federal Preservation Officers (DFPO) for the NPS. The DFPOs serve as the nominating authority for NPS parks and historic properties to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) or as National Historic Landmarks (NHL). The Park History Program staff supports the DFPOs in their work on behalf of national parks.

Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark
Wrangell-St Elias National Park & Preserve, Alaska. NHL 1986. NPS / Mike Townsend

What is the NRHP and what are NHLs?

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the U.S. Government's official list of the Nation's historic places. The buildings, structures, districts, sites, and objects in the list are considered worthy of preservation for their historical significance or great artistic value.

National Historic Landmarks (NHL) are historic properties that illustrate the heritage of the United States. NHLs are listed in the NRHP but are also recognized for their outstanding historical significance to the Nation. Less than 3% of properties listed in the NRHP are designated as NHLs.

Why nominate parks and park historic properties to the NRHP?

As a federal agency, the National Park Service is required by law to survey, inventory, and nominate historic properties to the NRHP that are:

• In its custody and
• Are of national, state, or local significance

Listing in the NRHP or designation as an NHL is important for maintaining and preserving historic properties in national parks. In addition, the information in the NRHP or NHL documentation is used by park staff in various areas such as planning, park management, compliance, facility maintenance, and interpretation. Unfortunately for any resources not properly identified and inventoried, preservation and protection can be severely limited.

Aren’t most parks and park historic properties already documented and in the NRHP?

The short answer is No.

Historical park units are automatically listed in the NRHP. This is known as "administratively listed" and is done as soon as an historical park is authorized or established. The documentation however, is not always completed at that time. This means that many historical parks have never been documented on NRHP forms.

Non-historical parks aren't historic properties and aren't automatically listed in the NRHP. These parks do have historic properties, but many of the properties either haven't been evaluated for inclusion in the NRHP or have been designated as NRHP-eligible properties but haven't been nominated to the NRHP.

District of Columbia War Memorial honoring D.C. residents who fought in World War I. National Mall and Memorial Parks, DC. NRHP 2014. Wikimedia Commons / MusikAnimal

Does the Park History Program help parks with NRHP or NHL nominations?

Yes! The DFPO is also the manager of the Park History Program which means that the Program is the Deputy Federal Preservation Office for the National Park Service.

Program staff provides pre-nomination guidance on boundaries, photo and mapping requirements, historic contexts, and other questions authors or researchers may have as they begin the park NRHP or NHL documentation process. The staff reviews all park NRHP and NHL nominations prior to submission and works with nomination authors to ensure all relevant regulations and guidelines are followed. In addition, the staff works with parks to revise and update older NRHP nominations to reflect current scholarship or boundary changes.

Program staff will also review, comment, and offer guidance on creating or updating park Historic Resource Studies. An Historic Resource Study is a primary cultural resource management tool and a key component in identifying a park's cultural resources and evaluating their eligibility for listing in the NRHP.

Where can I see a list of National Park NRHP or NHL properties?