September 21, 2018

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Press Contacts:
National Park Service, newsmedia@nps.gov
Institute of Museum and Library Services, eholtan@imls.gov
National Endowment for the Humanities, media@neh.gov
National Endowment of the Arts, publicaffairs@arts.gov

$4.8 Million in Grants Go to "Save America’s Treasures"

Washington, D.C. – The National Park Service, in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the National Endowment of the Humanities, and the National Endowment for the Arts, today announced $4.8 million in Save America’s Treasures grants to help fund 16 projects in 12 states. The funds will support the preservation of nationally significant historic properties and collections throughout the country.

“Together with federal, state, tribal, and local governments as well as nonprofit partners, these funds will preserve historic structures, art, landscapes, and even a fishing schooner,” said National Park Service Deputy Director P. Daniel Smith. “Whether conserving archival records or restoring a historic opera house, each grant will enable a community to save an important piece of history and have a positive impact on the surrounding area.”

Examples of funded projects include:

  • Conserve the decorative paintings in Victoria Mansion’s parlor in Maine. The Mansion houses the earliest, only intact commission of interior designer Gustave Herter and contains the only surviving murals by artist Giuseppe Guidicini in America. The project will address stabilization and conservation of paint finishes, removal of grime and soot and overpainting, in-studio treatment of two Iliad ceiling canvases, and reattachment of loose elements.
     
  • Restore Lake View Cemetery’s James A. Garfield Memorial in Ohio. The Memorial is listed as nationally significant in the National Register of Historic Places both for its Gilded Age architecture and for housing President Garfield’s tomb. The building was dedicated in 1890 when President Garfield was interred. Exposure to weather and water infiltration into the building has caused severe problems. This project will fund masonry restoration & waterproofing of the terrace level of the building.
     
  • Rehabilitate the fishing schooner L.A. Dunton, a National Historic Landmark in Connecticut. The schooner was built in 1921, and is part of the 350-year New England fishing tradition. It was designed by Thomas F. McManus, one of the most influential fishing schooner designers. Rehabilitation work will ensure it keeps its watertight integrity and structural stability. This project will repair deck beams, hull planking, the stern, and interior ceiling of the ship.

Congress appropriates funding for the Save America’s Treasures grants from the Historic Preservation Fund, which uses revenue from federal oil leases to provide a range of preservation assistance without expending tax dollars. The program requires applicants to match the grant money dollar-for-dollar with funds from non-federal sources. This award of $4.8 million will leverage more than $10 million in private and public investment.

The federal Save America’s Treasures program, established in 1998, is managed by 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, with the objective of preserving nationally significant historic properties and museum collections for future generations of Americans.

The Save America’s Treasures program has provided $315 million to more than 1,300 projects to provide preservation and conservation work on nationally significant collections, artifacts, structures, and sites. Requiring a dollar-for-dollar private match, these grants have leveraged more than $377 million in private investment, and contributed more than 16,000 jobs to local and state economies.

For a list of all previously funded Save America’s Treasures projects, please view the American Architectural Foundation’s Treasure Map.

2018 National Save America’s Treasures Program Grant Recipients Direct Grants Awarded by the National Park Service

State

Recipient

Project Title

Award

California

Orange County Parks

Restoration of the Joseph Pleasants Stone Building at the Helena Modjeska Historic House and Gardens

$500,000

Colorado

City of Leadville

Preservation of the Tabor Opera House in Leadville

$500,000

Connecticut

Mystic Seaport Museum

Rehabilitation of the National Historic Landmark 1921 Fishing Schooner L.A. Dunton

$491,750

Massachusetts

Foundation for the Preservation of 20 Arlington Street, Inc.

Arlington Street Church Portico Preservation

$500,000

Montana

Montana Department of Commerce

Restoration of Grace Methodist Church in Virginia City

$200,000

Nevada

Western Missionary Museum Corporation

Rehabilitation of Saint Paul the Prospector Church in Virginia City

$153,017

New York

Adirondack Architectural Heritage

Stabilization and Conservation of Great Camp Santanoni’s Main Lodge

$370,000

Ohio

Lake View Cemetery Foundation

Restoration of Lake View Cemetery: James A. Garfield Memorial

$500,000

Wisconsin

Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation

Taliesin- Hillside Theater Restoration

$320,000

Building Total:

 

 

$3,187,783

Museum Collection grants awarded through an interagency agreement with IMLS:

State

Recipient

Project Title

Award

Arizona

Arizona Board of Regents

Conserving photographic Media Documenting 13,000 Years of Indigenous Heritage in the Southwest

$500,000

California

J. Paul Getty Trust

Archival conservation of collections of the Women’s Building, Los Angeles

$284,400

Connecticut

Mystic Seaport Museum

Conservation of Rosenfeld Collection of Maritime Photography Recovery Project

$244,417

Indiana

Trustees of Indiana University

Curating Angel Mounds Legacy Collection

$300,590

Maine

Victoria Mansion

Conserving the Decorative Paintings in Victoria Mansion’s parlor

$132,050

New York

New York State Archives Partnership Trust

Revolutionary War and New York Loyalists Collection conservation for NY State Archives

$125,760

Oregon

Friends of Timberline

Conservation of significant Works Progress Administration art collection of the Timberline Lodge

$25,000

Collections Total:

 

 

$1,612,217


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More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 417 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at www.nps.gov, on Facebook www.facebook.com/nationalparkservice, Twitter www.twitter.com/natlparkservice, and YouTube www.youtube.com/nationalparkservice.

About the Institute of Museum and Library Services
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation's libraries and museums. We advance, support, and empower America’s museums, libraries, and related organizations through grantmaking, research, and policy development. Our vision is a nation where museums and libraries work together to transform the lives of individuals and communities. To learn more, visit www.imls.gov and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.