Preservation Grants

From the Library of Congress,

Foundation Grants for Preservation Libraries, Archives, and Museums

Downloadable -- FREE -- as an Adobe Acrobat document.

"This publication lists 1,725 grants of $5,000 or more awarded by 474 foundations, from 2003 through 2007. It covers grants to public, academic, research, school, and special libraries, and to archives and museums for activities related to conservation and preservation." Using this resource, you can find out who is giving grant money, where, and for what purpose.

I found this link in the monthly Heritage News e-newsletter from the National Park Service, which can be read online, or emailed to you.

Storm Preparation for Historic Homes

Just because an old house has withstood a storm or two in its day, don't assume that it will survive another. The State of Florida has a program called My Safe Florida Home, designed to help homeowners make their houses better able to withstand natural disasters such as hurricanes. The Florida Division of Historic Resources has made available online its Guidelines for Retrofit Improvements to Historic Properties Assisted by the My Safe Florida Home Matching Grant Program. The purpose is to minimize negative impacts to the character of historic houses being retrofitted. The Guidelines include specific recommendations for roofing, walls, porches, doors, and windows.

The Division of Historical Resources also offers General Guidelines for Historic Properties in Recovery after a natural disaster, and Disaster Planning for Historic Resources.

Florida Historic Preservation Grants

Historic Preservation and Historical Museum Special Category Grants are available through the Florida Department of State, Office of Cultural and Historical Programs. State agencies, state universities, local governments, and non-profit organizations can submit grant applications between April 1 and May 31, 2007.

The purpose of these grants is "To assist major archaeological excavations, large restoration projects at historic structures, and major museum exhibit projects involving the development and presentation of information on the history of Florida."

Grant amounts range from $50,000 to $350,000. Submitting organizations must be able to demonstrate significant local cost share over past years, and commit to a minimum $50,000 match.

Applications will be reviewed by the Florida Historical Commission in September, with top applicants recommended for funding by the state legislature. In 2006, 53 grants were recommended for funding in 2008, for a total of nearly $15 million.

The #1 ranked project was the Town of Fort Myers Beach's Mound House Shell Mound Exhibit. Other high ranking projects were:

the Escambia County Courthouse
the Centro Asturiano in Tampa
the Harry S. Truman Little White House in Key West
the Annie Pfeiffer Chapel at Florida Southern College
the 1919 Lake Wales School