Sac History Happenings: National Register of Historic Places is more than pretty buildings

Sac History Happenings

News and developments in Sacramento and California history

November 6, 2011

National Register of Historic Places is more than pretty buildings

In today's Bee Sam McManis explores the National Register of Historic Places, the coveted distinction granted to treasured sites deemed worthy of preservation. Administered by the National Park Service, the listing "is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America's historic and archeological resources."

As McManis explains, not all NRHP sites are stately old buildings. Some are bridges, factories, ships and archeology mounds. Some aren't even visible, having been torn down, burned, submerged or buried.

The four-county region is home to over 100 designated sites. Many are concentrated in Sacramento's central city. You can browse the local list geographically with The Bee's interactive map. If you'd like search for U.S. historic places by name or location, check out the NRHP online database.

Just for the fun of it (and because newspapers love rankings) The Bee asked three local experts to help compile the "Top Ten Historic Sites" in the region. This was hardly a scientific survey. We just asked our judges to pick out ten items from the Register which are the most recognizable, interesting and visually striking. There was general agreement on several of the usual suspects: Old Sacramento, Memorial Auditorium, Tower Bridge, Locke Historic District, Sutter's Fort, Delta King, etc. You can see the finalists in this Sacbee photo gallery.

Many thanks to the following people for taking the time to assist The Bee with the NRHP story: Marcia Eymann, Sacramento City Historian; Roberta Deering, Senior Planner for Historic Preservation, Sacramento Community Development Department; and Dr. Robin Datel, Professor and Chair, CSUS Geography Department.

PHOTO CREDIT: Sutter's Fort Central Building. 2010 Sacramento Bee photograph by Manny Crisostomo

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California and Sacramento have a long, rich, vibrant history. And our region is blessed with an abundance of historical resources maintained by museums, libraries, archives and societies. This blog aims to alert readers to the latest developments in local/state historical education and research.

Send tips concerning upcoming exhibits, tours, lectures and meetings, as well as new books, magazine articles and online collections to the blog's contributors.

The Contributors:

Michael Dolgushkin

Michael Dolgushkin is Manuscript Librarian at the California State Library History Section. He is co-author of San Francisco's California Street Cable Cars and is a frequent contributor to the California State Library Foundation Bulletin. Contact him at mdolgushkin@library.ca.gov.

Amanda Graham is a Certified Archivist working in the Sacramento Room of the Sacramento Public Library. She earned a BS in History from Southern Oregon University and a MS in Information Studies with an emphasis in archives from The University of Texas at Austin. Contact her at agraham@saclibrary.org.

Pete Basofin is Director of Editorial Research at The Sacramento Bee. He previously worked at The St. Petersburg Times and Columbia (Mo.) Daily Tribune. Contact him at pbasofin@sacbee.com.

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