National Historical RegisterIndependent guide · not a government site

Guides

Thirty guides at launch, each researched from the official sources listed at its foot and drafted with AI assistance under the editor's name, linking to the relevant tool and to real property pages as worked examples. Guides marked in progress are outlines awaiting their text.

Owning a listed property

What listing restricts (little), what it unlocks (tax credits, easements), insurance, renovation and selling.

  1. What being on the National Register actually means for a homeowner
  2. The 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, explained with a worked example
  3. State historic tax credits: the full table, 50 states
  4. Historic home insurance: what changes, which insurers specialise
  5. Can I renovate, add on or demolish a National Register building?
  6. Selling a listed home: disclosure, pricing, buyer pool
  7. Historic preservation easements: the tax deduction and the trade-off
  8. Buying a vacant or derelict Register property: due diligence checklist
  9. Section 106 review: when federal money or permits trigger it
  10. Local landmark vs National Register vs National Historic Landmark: the differences

Getting a property listed

The nomination process, the criteria, costs, consultants and every SHPO.

  1. How to nominate a property to the National Register, step by step
  2. The four criteria and the seven aspects of integrity, in plain English
  3. What a National Register nomination costs and how long it takes
  4. How to find and hire a National Register nomination consultant
  5. SHPO directory: every state preservation office and how to find review-board dates
  6. The 50-year rule, where it comes from, and the exceptions
  7. Reading a nomination form (with an annotated example)
  8. Why National Register nominations get rejected, and what to do next

Plaques and recognition

There is no official plaque. What the rules allow and how to buy and mount one.

  1. National Register plaques: rules, wording, who can buy one
  2. Bronze vs aluminum vs etched plaques: cost and durability compared
  3. Plaque vendor comparison: six makers of National Register plaques
  4. How to mount a plaque without damaging historic fabric

Heritage travel and understanding the Register

How the Register works and themed itineraries built from the listings.

  1. How the National Register works: the law, the agencies and what listing means
  2. The oldest listed buildings in each of the ten launch states
  3. Carnegie libraries on the National Register: counts by state
  4. Historic courthouses road trip: the 25 best
  5. Lighthouses on the National Register: counts by state and who owns them now
  6. Civil Rights Movement sites on the Register
  7. America250: 50 Revolutionary-era sites you can visit
  8. The strangest things on the National Register