National Register of Historic Places

Listing a building on the National Register of Historic Places is a collaborative process between the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), the State Review Board, the National Park Service, and the nomination’s sponsor. The sponsor might be the building’s owner, a municipality, or another interested party. While the owner does not need to be the sponsor, the owner does need to consent to the listing in order for it to go forward.

The first step in the process is determining whether the property is eligible for the National Register, which is done by the SHPO based on a review of submitted information. There are two qualifications for eligibility, the first being that a property meet one of the four criteria for evaluation. Most properties are nominated under Criteria A, B, or C. Criterion A is for properties associated with historic events, meaning either a single specific event, like the signing of the Declaration of Independence at Independence Hall, or a broad pattern of events, like suburbanization. Research must be done to show the link between the property and the event(s) it is associated with. Criterion B is for properties associated with a historically significant person or people. The tie between the person and the building must relate to the person’s significance; e.g., simply being the birthplace of a president does not make a property eligible under Criterion B. Criterion C, design/construction, is for buildings that are significant due to their architecture. This can be because they are excellent examples of a particular architectural style or construction method, are the work of an important architect, or are otherwise architecturally notable.

The other factor in determining a building’s eligibility is whether it has integrity, meaning it retains the key features that visibly distinguish it as historic. The National Park Service has defined seven aspects of integrity that should be taken into account; a property does not need to have all seven, but should have most. The aspects are setting, location, design, workmanship, materials, feeling, and association. Location is the specific site where the property was built; setting is the physical context of the building; design is the planned aspects of the building such as shape, structure, and style; workmanship is the physical evidence of how the design was carried out; materials are what the building is made of; and feeling and association are intangible qualities that relate to the property having a physical sense of history. Alterations to the building can compromise these aspects and result in the building losing its integrity.

If a building meets one or more of the criteria and retains integrity, the SHPO will determine that it is eligible for the National Register, and a full nomination can then be written. The nomination will consist of two main parts, one being a written description of the building’s interior and exterior and the other being a statement of its significance, providing detailed information about the building’s history and how it meets the criteria it is being nominated under. Recent photographs of the property must also be included. The completed nomination is submitted to the SHPO for review, who may request edits. Once the nomination is finalized, the SHPO will submit it to the State Review Board, which is a group of professionals authorized to review and approve nominations at the state level. Once approved by the Review Board, the nomination will be sent on to the National Park Service for a final review. Again, edits may be requested at this stage. The National Park Service’s approval of the nomination is the final step needed for a building to be officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Tabitha O’Connell - 2026