Save America's Treasures

Save America's Treasures
Public domain · source
Name	Save America's Treasures
Formation	1998
Founders	First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt
Type	Preservation program
Purpose	Historic preservation, cultural heritage conservation
Location	United States
Parent organization	White House initiative; administered by National Park Service and National Trust for Historic Preservation (partners)

Contents

Save America's Treasures was a federal preservation initiative launched in 1998 to preserve nationally significant cultural artifacts, historic structures, and documentary collections. The initiative linked federal agencies such as the National Park Service and the National Endowment for the Humanities with nonprofit organizations including the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and engaged political figures like Hillary Rodham Clinton and administrators such as Bruce Babbitt. The program sought to conserve sites and objects associated with figures like Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, and institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution, connecting preservation to broader themes represented by the National Historic Preservation Act and the National Register of Historic Places.

History

The program was announced in a White House forum involving President Bill Clinton, First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, and officials from agencies including the National Park Service and the National Endowment for the Arts, drawing upon precedents like the Historic American Buildings Survey and initiatives under Franklin D. Roosevelt. Early years saw partnerships with the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, and state historic preservation offices such as those in Virginia, Massachusetts, and New York (state), aiming to respond to threats documented in reports by the Government Accountability Office and advocates from the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the American Institute of Architects.

Administration relied on interagency coordination among the National Park Service, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the National Endowment for the Arts, with grant review panels drawing experts from the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, the American Association for State and Local History, and universities such as Harvard University and University of Virginia. The program used criteria related to listings on the National Register of Historic Places, significance under the National Historic Landmarks program, and the condition assessments consistent with standards from the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and reports produced by the National Academy of Sciences. Oversight involved congressional committees such as the United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and the United States House Committee on Natural Resources.

Funding combined federal appropriations authorized by acts of Congress with matching contributions from private donors including foundations like the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and corporations, and in-kind support coordinated with nonprofits like the National Trust for Historic Preservation and local historical societies such as the Bostonian Society and the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association. Grant awards supported projects at sites such as Monticello, Independence Hall, Ellis Island, and collections at the Library of Congress and the National Archives and Records Administration, often requiring compliance with federal statutes like the National Historic Preservation Act and reporting to bodies such as the Government Accountability Office and the Office of Management and Budget.

Recipients included high-profile locations and artifacts: restorations at Independence Hall, conservation of manuscripts in the Library of Congress, preservation work at Fort Sumter, stabilization of structures at Mount Vernon, rehabilitation of collections at the Smithsonian Institution, and documentation projects for the Harlem Renaissance archives and the papers of Martin Luther King Jr.. Other grants supported the preservation of regional landmarks such as Taos Pueblo, Mesa Verde National Park, Old Sturbridge Village, and Poverty Point, and object conservation for works associated with George Washington, James Madison, Susan B. Anthony, and the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Collaborative projects engaged museums like the New-York Historical Society, universities like Columbia University, and cultural institutions including the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Supporters cited successful rehabilitations at Ellis Island, increased access to collections at the Library of Congress, and strengthened capacity at state historic preservation offices in Virginia, Pennsylvania, and California', linking outcomes to tourism at sites such as Independence National Historical Park and Monticello and to educational programs at Smithsonian affiliates. Critics questioned prioritization decisions made by panels involving stakeholders from the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the National Endowment for the Humanities, raised concerns about uneven geographic distribution highlighted by studies from the Government Accountability Office and academic critiques from scholars at University of Illinois and University of Pennsylvania, and debated the program's reliance on federal matching funds amid budget pressures from debates in the United States Congress and policy shifts under administrations like George W. Bush.

Elements of the initiative informed later federal and private programs administered by the National Park Service, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and inspired state-level efforts such as historic tax credit programs in Maryland and New Jersey and capacity-building initiatives at institutions like the American Alliance of Museums and the Association of State and Local History. Its legacy appears in continued conservation projects at sites including Monticello, Independence Hall, and the Library of Congress, and in successor funding streams and policy frameworks debated in forums like the Preservation Leadership Forum and hearings before the United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.