Announcing $15.5 Million in Grants to "Save America's Treasures"

Washington, DC—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, announced $15,500,000 in Save America’s Treasures grants to fund 49 preservation and conservation projects in 29 states.

These grants and the matching funds support the preservation of nationally significant historic properties and collections across America. IMLS will administer 24 of the awards, totaling $5,547,021. Examples of awarded grant projects include:

• The Denver Museum of Nature and Science will inventory, process, and catalog the Jones-Miller Site, a Paleoindian Hell Gap period (ca. 10,500–11,500 years ago) bison kill site. The project team will preserve the Jones-Miller Collection in optimal storage conditions to mitigate physical risks and fully inventory its contents. The review and editing of existing written materials will build a foundation for the publication of a new manuscript about the collection so that it can be accessed by researchers and its story shared with the public.

• The Center for Jewish History and the American Jewish Historical Society will digitize the Baron de Hirsch Fund Records. Founded in 1891 to support Jewish refugees fleeing pogroms and abject poverty in Russia, the Baron de Hirsch Fund trained immigrants in farming and trades and provided financial support for everything from meeting new arrivals at ports of entry and teaching English language classes to assisting with farm mortgages.

• The Battleship Texas Foundation will repair advanced levels of deterioration found in the superstructure of Battleship Texas. While in commission from 1914-1946, Battleship Texas was influential in many pivotal events in American history, having served in both World War I and World War II, and she is the last surviving dreadnought-type battleship. Restoring the aft fire control tower, mainmast, smokestack, and foremast will eliminate the threat of structural failure, preventing further damage and loss of historic fabric.

“We are thrilled to once again partner with the National Park Service and our fellow cultural agencies, the NEH and NEA, on the Save America’s Treasures program,” said IMLS Director Crosby Kemper. “These grants, heavily leveraged by private dollars, preserve, restore, and polish some of the great buildings, sites, and collections in America—America the Beautiful!”

“From the Rose Bowl Stadium in California to Lucy the Elephant in New Jersey, the Save America's Treasures program seeks to preserve and rehabilitate some of the most significant and iconic American structures and collections. Together with our partners, these grants help enable museums, states, Tribes, local governments, and nonprofits to fulfill their preservation work for future generations to experience, learn from, and enjoy,” said NPS Deputy Director Shawn Benge.

The Federal Save America’s Treasures program was established in 1998, and is carried out in partnership with IMLS, NEA, and NEH. Since 1999, Save America’s Treasures has provided over $339 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 $479 million in private investment and contributed more than 16,000 jobs to local and state economies. These awards of $15.5 million will leverage more than $20 million in private and public investment.

For more information on IMLS’s Save America’s Treasures projects, visit the IMLS website and search awarded grants. For a list of all previously funded Save America’s Treasures projects, please view the Impact of the Save America's Treasures Grant Program Map.

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.