WASHINGTON, May 1, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- The National Trust for Historic Preservation
today unveiled its 2024 list of America's 11 Most Endangered
Historic Places, an annual ranking that spotlights significant
sites of American history that are at risk of destruction or
irreparable damage.
"This year's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places list shows how
our collective idea of American history has expanded in recent
years, along with our ideas about which places are worth saving,"
said Carol Quillen, President and
CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
"Seventy-five years ago, widely recognized sites of national
history were largely confined to the East Coast and 'historic
preservation' was synonymous with the great architecture of our
Founding Fathers. That foundation is still important, but today
there's more recognition that history ought to help us tell the
full American story, including that of groups and places previously
left at the margins. That expanded perspective is reflected
throughout this year's list, particularly in the three sites
located outside of the contiguous United
States."
Since first debuting in 1988, the list of America's 11 Most
Endangered Historic Places has proven to be a highly effective tool
for shining a light on the threats facing our nation's greatest
treasures. Due to the efforts of the National Trust and its
passionate supporters, the 11 Most Endangered list has often
provided the decisive force needed to preserve important cultural
landmarks. Now in its 37th year, the ongoing initiative has
galvanized public support behind more than 350 sites to date with
only a handful lost.
To learn more about the places on this year's list and find out
what you can do to help preserve them, go to
www.SavingPlaces.org/11Most.
The 2024 list of America's 11 Most Endangered Historic
Places (alphabetical)
Cindy Walker House,
Mexia, Texas
Trailblazing
country music songwriter Cindy
Walker (1917-2006) lived and worked in her Mexia, Texas home for over 50 years, penning
Top 10 hits across five decades. Unfortunately, like many female
artists, Cindy Walker was largely
overlooked in her lifetime, and so too is her historic home. Since
her death in 2006, the property has suffered foundation issues and
roof leaks, leading to significant interior damage. Supporters and
Walker's family members are working to preserve both the home and
Cindy Walker's inspiring legacy as
one of country music's finest composers.
Eatonville,
Florida
Eatonville,
Florida, was one of the first self-governing all-Black
municipalities in the United
States, and the hometown of iconic author, folklorist, and
anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston.
Many historic buildings in Eatonville need investment, rehabilitation,
and protection from development pressures. Efforts to celebrate the
community's significance and advocate for preservation of the
town's historic resources are ongoing and in need of increased
funding and support.
Estate Whim Museum, Frederiksted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Established during
the colonization of St. Croix by Denmark, Estate Whim was a plantation
producing cotton and sugar for export. The lives and legacies of
those enslaved by plantation owners and those who continued to
labor there for meager wages for a century after emancipation are
inextricably tied to the site, which now hosts a museum, library
and archives, and public programming. Repeated hurricanes have
damaged many of Estate Whim Museum's historic buildings and
structures, and the site steward needs support and resources to
move forward with repairs.
Hudson-Athens Lighthouse, Athens,
New York
Opened in 1874, the Hudson-Athens Lighthouse
used to be one of several "middle-of-the-river" lighthouses on the
Hudson River. Now it's one of only two left standing. However, due
to erosion and other preservation challenges, engineering reports
indicate the building is at risk of collapse within three years if
no action is taken. Advocates are working to raise the funding
needed to preserve the site and keep the lighthouse open to the
public.
Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, California
Little
Tokyo is one of only four
remaining Japantowns in the United
States and one of the oldest neighborhoods in Los Angeles, but its unique character is
endangered by large-scale development and transit projects and
displacement of legacy businesses and restaurants. Support for
local preservation organizations, investment in policy initiatives,
and continued community advocacy efforts could help protect both
the people and the institutions that make Little Tokyo
irreplaceable.
Minute Man National Historical Park, Walden, and nearby
landmarks, Massachusetts
Minute Man National
Historical Park and the nearby areas of Concord, Lexington, Lincoln, and Bedford are home to places of great
significance in American history, including Walden Pond and Woods and the preserved
homesteads of authors and environmentalists: Little Women's
Louisa May Alcott, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Henry David Thoreau. A
proposed major expansion of nearby Hanscom Field airport could
significantly increase private jet traffic, leading to increased
noise, vehicular traffic, and negative environmental and climate
impacts. A strong coalition has formed in opposition to this
expansion, arguing that such an extraordinarily important historic
area should not be impaired by a development of this scale and
potential impact.
New Salem Baptist Church, Tams, West Virginia
Built in the coal company
town of Tams in 1921, the New Salem Baptist Church is one of the
last physical reminders of that community and helps tell the story
of Black coal miners and their families in West Virginia. Although community support for
the church is strong, the building needs more upkeep and repairs
than the small congregation can currently handle. More funding and
partnerships are needed to fully preserve the church and ensure
that it can remain part of community life for years to
come.
Roosevelt High School,
Gary, Indiana
Theodore Roosevelt High School in Gary was built in 1930 specifically to serve
the educational needs of Black Americans, and has notable alumni
including professional athletes, well-known actors, and members of
The Jackson 5. The school has been unoccupied and deteriorating
since 2019. A coalition of organizations are working together to
restore and reuse the site in a way that honors the school's
historic significance to Gary,
Indiana.
Sitka Tlingit Clan Houses, Sitka,
Alaska
The Sitka Tlingit Clan Houses in southeast
Alaska are critically important to
both the history and the future of the Lingít (commonly spelled in
English as "Tlingit"). For many years, the matrilineal clan
structure of multigenerational extended families living together in
clan houses was discouraged in favor of the western practice of
living with nuclear families. Today, only eight of the original 43
clan houses remain and even fewer still function as clan houses in
the traditional way, as part of Tlingit hereditary matrilineal
identity and centers of ceremony and tradition. Tlingit tribal
citizens and allies are working to preserve and celebrate the Sitka
Tlingit Clan Houses and the Tlingit traditions through
preservation, new construction, and ownership restoration of clan
properties.
Tangier American Legation, Tangier, Morocco
In 1821, the Tangier American
Legation in Morocco was gifted to
the United States by the Moroccan
Sultan as a token of friendship, becoming the first American public
property located abroad, and subsequently served as a U.S.
diplomatic mission for a record 140 years. Now a cultural center,
museum, and research library, the Legation is in urgent need of
structural stabilization and repairs following the recent collapse
of an adjacent building, so it can continue serving the community
and telling the story of U.S. diplomacy for generations to
come.
Wilderness Battlefield Area, Orange
County, Virginia
The Battle of the Wilderness marked
a pivotal turning point in the Civil War, but today not all the
historically significant landscape is protected. Proposed large new
developments, including millions of square feet of industrial data
and distribution centers and thousands of homes, may negatively
impact important historic sites and landscapes and degrade the
visitor experience. A broad coalition has formed to encourage
Orange County decisionmakers to
build upon past planning efforts and avoid potential significant
impacts of development in the Wilderness Battlefield
area.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a privately
funded nonprofit organization, works to save America's historic
places. SavingPlaces.org | @savingplaces
Press Contact: Elliot Carter |
pr@savingplaces.org
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SOURCE National Trust for Historic Preservation