page_title: National Trust for Historic Preservation
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: National Trust for Historic Preservation / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Glass House by Philip Johnson (exterior) in New Canaan, CT, USA
context_page_description: The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 by congressional charter to support the preservation of America’s diverse historic buildings, neighborhoods, and heritage through its programs, resources, and advocacy.
context_section_description: Toward the end of the 19th century, in response to increased immigration and the broad effort of rebuilding after the Civil War, the country was developing a renewed sense of national identity and history. The government began to enact legislation for the preservation of sites and objects deemed significant to the nation’s history. In 1872, an Act of Congress established the first National Park, Yellowstone. In 1906, the Antiquities Act enabled the President to declare landmarks or objects as a national monument. Then in 1935, during the Great Depression, Congress passed the Historic Sites Act, which outlined programs for research and inventory of historic sites.
  Meanwhile, historic preservation initiatives existed on local and state levels. In 1931, Charleston, South Carolina created the first historic district for protection. However, efforts to save and maintain historic sites were still largely limited to private citizens or local groups.
  In the late 1940s, leaders in American historic preservation saw the need for a national organization to support local preservation efforts. In 1946, David E. Finley, Jr., George McAneny, Christopher Crittenden, and Ronald Lee met at the National Gallery of Art to discuss the formation of such a national organization. This meeting was followed by a larger gathering on April 15, 1947, attended by representatives from a number of art, architectural, and historical societies, which culminated in the creation of the National Council for Historic Sites and Buildings. The meeting’s attendants became the first charter members of the Council. The organization’s first headquarters was in the offices of Ford’s Theatre (Lincoln Museum) in downtown Washington, D.C.
  The Council pursued the formation of a National Trust for Historic Preservation, somewhat modeled on the British National Trust, which would be tasked with the acquisition and maintenance of historic properties. The creation of the National Trust was proposed as a bill to Congress, H.R. 5170, introduced by Congressman J. Hardin Peterson of Florida and passed.
  The private, non-profit National Trust for Historic Preservation was formally established by charter through the Act of Congress when President Harry S. Truman signed the legislation on October 26, 1949. The charter provided that the Trust should acquire and preserve historic sites and objects of national significance and provide annual reports to Congress on its activities. Finley served as the National Trust's first chairman of the board, remaining in the position for 12 years.
   The National Trust and the National Council existed side by side for several years until the need to merge resources compelled the Executive Committee to integrate the two entities. In 1952, the boards of both organizations approved a merger of the Council into the National Trust. The merger was effective the following year and was completed by 1956. The National Trust became a membership organization and assumed all other functions of the National Council.
  In its early years, the National Trust’s founders envisioned an organization whose primary purpose would be the acquisition and administration of historic sites, while encouraging public participation in their preservation. In 1957, the National Trust officially acquired its first property, Woodlawn Plantation in northern Virginia. Since then, the National Trust portfolio of historic properties and contracted affiliates has expanded to include twenty-seven historic sites, ranging from the 18th-century Drayton Hall in South Carolina to the Modernist Glass House in Connecticut.
  Over the next decade, the National Trust grew to become the leading national organization in historic preservation. They began working with citizens and city planning officials on legislative matters, including federal, state, and municipal ordinances for historic preservation. National Trust staff also traveled to parts of the country to advise local communities on preservation projects.
  In 1966, Congress passed the National Historic Preservation Act, significant legislation f
caption: The portfolio of National Trust sites has expanded to include Phillip Johnson's Glass House, New Canaan, Connecticut.
exif: {"Image Make": "Panasonic", "Image Model": "DMC-FX01", "Image Orientation": "0", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Picasa 3.0", "Image DateTime": "2009:06:14 11:53:34", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image ExifOffset": "422", "Image PrintIM": "[80, 114, 105, 110, 116, 73, 77, 0, 48, 50, 53, 48, 0, 0, 14, 0, 1, 0, 22, 0, ... ]", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "7080", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "4831", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/250", "EXIF FNumber": "41/10", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "80", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2009:06:14 11:53:34", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2009:06:14 11:53:34", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "4", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "3", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "103/10", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "Uncalibrated", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2515", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1227", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "6956", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "0", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "63", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF GainControl": "None", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "e20cd4287c206d4fcd3cb9a0de63cb2a"}