Interior Secretary Haaland designates 18 new sites of natural, historical significance

News Release Date: December 13, 2023

Contact: NewsMedia@nps.gov

WASHINGTON – Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland today designated 16 new National Historic Landmarks (NHLs) and two new National Natural Landmarks (NNLs). The designations reflect the importance of the sites in sharing America’s rich history and extraordinary natural features.     

“The new National Historic and Natural Landmarks designated today further the Interior Department’s vision for inclusive and collaborative conservation,” said Secretary Deb Haaland. “Supporting voluntary and locally led stewardship is key to nationwide efforts to conserve and connect the lands upon which we all depend.”       

“It’s important that the places we deem nationally significant represent the historical and natural diversity of the American experience,” said Chuck Sams, Director of the National Park Service, which administers the NHL and NNL programs. “These 18 new landmarks further illustrate and expand our country’s collective heritage and splendor.”    

New National Historic Landmarks  

NHLs are some of the nation’s most historically important buildings, sites, structures, objects and districts, which communicate themes in history, archeology, architecture, engineering and cultural significance. NHL designation is the highest federal recognition of a property’s historical, architectural, or archeological significance, and a testament to the dedicated stewardship of many private and public property owners who seek this designation.   

The newly designated NHLs in locations across the country join a select group of more than 2,600 noteworthy places that possess exceptional value in illustrating the history of the United States.     

The new NHLs across 14 states include:  

California: 

· Pond Farm Pottery  
· Wayfarers Chapel   

Colorado: 

· Wink’s Panorama 
· Temple Aaron   

Connecticut: 

· Barnum Institute of Science and History   

Idaho 

· Strategic Air Command Ground Alert Facility, Mountain Home Air Force Base    

Illinois 

· Sam and Ruth Van Sickle Ford House    

Indiana 

· Montgomery County Jail and Sheriff’s Residence    

Iowa 

· Pottawattamie County Jail and Sheriff’s Residence    

Massachusetts 

· Sampson-White Joiner Shop    

Tennessee 

· Fort Armistead    

Texas 

· Rio Vista Bracero Reception Center   

Washington, D.C. 

· National Archives Building   

West Virginia 

· Jefferson County Courthouse    

Wisconsin 

· Rock Island Site II    

Wyoming 

· Quebec 01 Launch Control Facility   

The Secretary also approved updated documentation for six current NHLs and withdrawal of designation from three NHLs because of loss of historic integrity due to fire or other damage.   

Updated National Historic Landmark Documentation:  
 

Withdrawal of National Historic Landmark Designation:  
 

The regulations governing the NHL program can be found here. Visit the National Historic Landmarks website for more information on these landmarks.       

New National Natural Landmarks  

The newly designated NNLs include Glenwood Caverns and Iron Mountain Hot Springs in Colorado, and John Boyd Thacher State Park in New York. These additions join 602 other locations that recognize and encourage the conservation of sites that contain outstanding biological and geological resources, bringing illustrative character, rarity, diversity and value to science and education.     

Glenwood Caverns and Iron Mountain Hot Springs in Colorado, a privately owned site, features unique cave processes and ecosystems. In addition to beautiful cave formations that line the floors and ceilings of the caves, these unique ecosystems are habitat for a variety of species including eight native and fully cave-adapted animals.   

John Boyd Thacher State Park – which is managed by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation – features the most complete and minimally disturbed record of Middle Paleozoic rock layering in the Appalachian Plateaus region, and perhaps across North America. The uniquely accessible fossil-rich deposits provide a visible geologic cross section spanning 63 million years that is foundational in the early study and understanding of North American geology and of widespread ancient mountain creation.       

More information about NNLs is available here.    

About the National Park Service: More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 425+ national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.