Cumulative List of Projects

Projects undertaken by OAH for the NPS range from resource studies, administrative histories and scholar roundtables, to National Register of Historic Places and National Historic Landmarks projects.

OAH-NPS Projects, 1994-2023

Project PDFs are linked when available

Resource Studies

Historic Resource Studies document the history that occurred within the boundaries of a national park unit before it was part of the NPS. They provide the historical research that forms the basis of a park’s historical interpretation and its management of historic structures. Special Resource Studies document the history of particular resources for a variety of purposes.

Site Reviews and Scholars Roundtables

The OAH assemble teams of scholars to visit national park units in order to consult on various planning efforts, such as creating interpretive plans or reconceptualizing the story it tells based on recent trends in scholarly understanding. The OAH has organized such events at the following sites.

  • Andrew Johnson National Historic Site
  • Antietam National Battlefield
  • Appomattox Courthouse National Historical Park
  • Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor
  • Boston National Historical Park
  • Coltsville National Historical Park
  • Fort Monroe National Monument
  • Fort Raleigh National Historic Site
  • Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site
  • Gettysburg National Military Park
  • Grand Teton National Park
  • Independence National Historical Park
  • Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve
  • John F. Kennedy National Historic Site
  • John Muir National Historic Site
  • Joshua Tree National Park
  • Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park
  • Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument
  • Lowell National Historical Park
  • Martin Van Buren National Historic Site
  • Minute Man National Historical Park
  • Mount Rushmore National Memorial
  • Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park
  • Pullman National Monument
  • Richmond National Battlefield Park
  • Sagamore Hill National Historic Site
  • Scotts Bluff National Monument
  • Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site
  • Valley Forge National Historical Park
National Historic Landmark Projects

The National Historic Landmarks Office, part of the National Park Service, monitors and advises on properties of national historic and architectural significance. Not all of these properties are part of national park units; many are privately owned or managed by other public entities and carry National Historic Landmark designation. The OAH has assisted on a number of applications for these designations, as well as collaborating on NHL theme studies, which advise the staff of this program on areas of U.S. history that are underrepresented in historic preservation efforts.

  • Air Force Academy Chapel NHL Nomination
  • Andalusia (Flannery O’Connor House) National Historic Landmark Nomination
  • Assessment of National Historic Landmarks Diversity
  • Dudley Farm National Historic Landmark Nomination
  • Great Falls National Historic Landmark District: Resource Inventory and Conditions Assessment
  • Jefferson County Courthouse (Charles Town, WV) National Historic Landmark Nomination
  • Illinois and Michigan Canal National Landmark Nomination
  • Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer history in the National Capital Region: Identification of Potential NHLs with LGBTQ Significance
  • Luther Sampson Joiner Shop National Historic Landmark Nomination
  • NHL Thematic Framework for Civil Rights in the National Capital Region
  • NHL Theme Study on African American History
  • NHL Theme Study on Aviation History
  • NHL Theme Study on Black Regulars in the Frontier Army (Buffalo Soldiers)
  • NHL Theme Study on Chinese American History
  • NHL Theme Study on Civil Rights in Education
  • NHL Theme Study on Civil Rights in Employment
  • NHL Theme Study on Civil Rights in Housing
  • NHL Theme Study on Civil Rights in Public Accommodations
  • NHL Theme Study on Civil Rights in Voting
  • NHL Theme Study on Women’s History
  • NHL Theme Study on the World War II Homefront
  • NHL Theme Study Updates (Asian and Latino Immigration; Hispanic History; Latino Migration; and History of Agriculture)
  • Organization of American States/ Pan-American Building National Historic Landmark Nomination
  • Pacific West Region National Historic Landmark Nominations (in progress)
  • Tolson’s Chapel National Historic Landmark Nomination
  • University of Wisconsin Arboretum National Historic Landmark Nomination (in progress)
  • Women in the Civil Rights Movement
National Register of Historic Places Projects

In addition to National Historic Landmarks, the National Park Service also administers the National Register of Historic Places, which recognizes properties of local, state, or national historic and architectural significance. Numerous OAH-NPS projects have focused on assessing properties owned by the National Park Service to ensure that their historic preservation documentation is up to date.

  • Arches National Park, Wolfe Ranch District National Register Amendment (in progress)
  • Bandelier National Monument, Mission 66 Resources Determination of National Register Eligibility
  • Dinosaur National Monument, Mission 66 Resources Determination of National Register Eligibility (in progress)
  • Fort Circle Parks, Washington, DC Civil War Defenses National Register Documentation
  • Grand Canyon National Park, Navajo Hill National Register District Nomination
  • John F. Kennedy National Historic Site National Register Nomination
  • Isle Royale National Park, Tobin Harbor National Register Nomination
  • Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, Historic Context Statement for Sunset Avenue (in progress)
  • Mesa Verde National Park, Multiple Property Documentation Form of Park Resources (in progress)
  • Natural Bridges National Monument, Residence Area Determination of National Register Eligibility
  • Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument Mission 66 National Register District Nomination (in progress)
  • Southeast Utah Group Historic Context Statement for Transportation Infrastructure at Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Hovenweep National Monument, and Natural Bridges National Monument (in progress)
  • Walnut Canyon National Monument 1904 Ranger Cabin National Register Amendment
Administrative Histories

Administrative Histories document the history of particular park sites or programs, with an eye toward using historical background to inform current management decisions. The OAH has collaborated with the NPS to develop administrative histories for the following park units.

  • Adams National Historical Park
  • Appomattox Courthouse National Historical Park
  • Biscayne National Park (in progress)
  • Booker T. Washington National Monument
  • Boston National Historical Park
  • Cape Cod National Seashore (forthcoming 2019)
  • Carl Sandburg National Historic Site
  • Catoctin Mountain Park
  • Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historic Park (in progress)
  • DeSoto National Monument
  • Everglades National Park
  • Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site
  • Fredericksburg/Spotsylvania National Military Park
  • Ft. Frederica National Monument
  • Golden Spike National Historic Site (in progress)
  • Grand Canyon – Parashant National Monument
  • Hampton National Historic Site (in progress)
  • Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site
  • Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve
  • John F. Kennedy National Historic Site (in progress)
  • Lake Mead National Recreation Area: Final Production
  • Longfellow House – Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site
  • Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site (in progress)
  • Manzanar National Historic Site
  • Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site (in progress)
  • Martin Van Buren National Historic Site
  • Midwest Archaeological Center
  • Minute Man National Historical Park
  • Monocacy National Battlefield (forthcoming 2019)
  • Oklahoma City National Monument
  • Piscataway Park (in progress)
  • Redwood National and State Parks (in progress)
  • Rock Creed Park (in progress)
  • Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site
  • Shenandoah National Park
  • Springfield Armory National Historic Site
  • Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts (in progress)
  • Women’s Rights National Historical Park
  • Yellowstone – Grand Teton National Parks, John D. Rockefeller Jr. Memorial Parkway (in progress)
Interpretive Projects

Interpretation is the umbrella term for all materials that convey content to visitors. These materials can include brochures, exhibits, films, informational trail signs, and ranger tours. In addition to our historic resource studies and scholars’ roundtable programs, which both have an influence on interpretation, the OAH has collaborated on some additional efforts in this area.

  • Civil War Sesquicentennial Web Site Peer Review
  • Exploring a Common Past: Interpreting Women’s History in the National Park Service (1996 Edition)
  • Exploring a Common Past: Interpreting Women’s History in the National Park Service (2003 Edition)
  • Historic House Museum Toolkit (in progress)
  • Lincoln Home National Historic Site Interpretive Update
  • Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front: Peer Review of Interpretive Films
  • Statue of Liberty Interpretive Themes
  • USS Arizona National Memorial: Peer Review of Exhibit Plans
  • War of 1812 – Teaching American Indian History
Professional Development

The OAH is well known as a provider of scholarly content and as the host of the largest conference on U.S. history, the OAH annual meeting held each spring. The organization has harnessed this background to provide a series of workshops and conferences on a variety of topics for NPS staff and for the public

  • Abraham Lincoln Sites Staff Training Seminars (3)
  • American Colonial Experience Distance Learning Class for NPS Staff
  • Civil War through Current Scholarship and Technology Conference
  • Early American Sites Network Distance Learning Class for NPS Staff
  • Interpreting Edison Conference
  • John Brown’s Body 2000 Conference
  • Meanings of Freedom Conference
  • The Monument to Robert Gould Shaw and the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts Regiment: History and Meaning
  • The Stuff of Women’s History Conference
  • Teacher Workshops: Using Place to Teach History (2)
  • The Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Conference (4)
  • Washington and Du Bois at the Turn of Two Centuries Conference
  • Women and Historic Preservation Conference
Oral Histories

The National Park Service is conscious of the value of oral history: its own internal history and the history of some of the recent events that are interpreted in national park units. The OAH has assisted in some of these efforts.

  • Catoctin Mountain Park Oral History
  • Meridian Hill National Historic Landmark District Oral History (in progress)
  • National Trails Oral History
  • Pacific West Regional Oral History
  • War of 1812 Tribal Youth Education and Oral History Project
Statements of Significance

For a site to become a unit of the National Park Service, the agency must conduct a Special Resource Study (SRS), analyzing the site’s feasibility, integrity, and significance. One component of the SRS is the statement of significance, which analyzes the national importance of the place by situating it in historical context.

  • Blackstone River Valley
  • Buffalo Bayou
  • Lincoln Highway
  • Midwestern Statements of Significance (Missouri and Arkansas)
  • River Raisin (Peer Review)
  • Space Shuttle Columbia
  • Tulsa Race Riot
Special Projects
  • American Colonial Experience Website: Peer Review
  • Archival Processing: NPS Records at the National Archives
  • Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site Scope of Collections
  • Bibliographic Essay Series for NPS Web Site
  • Evaluation of the NPS History Program, resulting in the report Imperiled Promise
  • First State National Monument Historic Structures Report
  • HABS/HAER Report of the Titan One Missile Complex
  • Grand Canyon National Park, Cultural Landscape Report of Toroweap Ranger Station (in progress)
  • Grand Canyon National Park, Cultural Landscape Report of Yavapai Museum of Geology (in progress)
  • Jamestown Fellows Program
  • Jamestown Research: African Influences
  • Manassas National Battlefield Park: Ethnographic Resource Study of the Henry and Robinson Farmsteads (in progress)
  • Minute Man National Park Administrative Research
  • Pipe Spring National Monument Historic Resource Study: Development Editing (in progress)
  • Publication Series: Cultural Resource Reports in the NPS Pacific West Region
  • Publication Series: Environmental History in the National Park Service
  • Publication Series: Highlights of Historical Work in NPS Northeast Region
  • Sagamore Hill General Management Plan: Scholarly Participation
  • Salem Maritime National Historic Site and Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site Ethnohistory
  • Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site Scope of Collections
  • Tumacácori National Historical Park Special Landscape Study (in progress)
  • Underground Railroad Elementary School Curriculum: Hampton to New Bedford
  • Zion National Park Collections Management Plan