Throughout this month, at various local ceremonies, the DNR will present its annual awards to recognize outstanding efforts in historic preservation and archaeology.

The awards will be presented by Beth McCord, the director of the Division of Historic Preservation & Archaeology (DHPA), and the rest of the division’s staff.

As the State Historic Preservation Office, the DHPA oversees the National Register of Historic Places in Indiana, the federally funded Historic Preservation Fund grant program, and the Reinvestment Historic Tax Credit program, and it administers programs to protect and preserve the state’s prehistoric and historical archaeological sites. The DHPA also functions as the central repository for historic structure and archaeological site records.

The following will receive the Indiana Historic Preservation Award:

The Heritage Preservation Society of Putnam County will receive an Indiana Historic Preservation Award in recognition of its efforts to recognize and preserve historic resources.

From 2011 to 2020, the county’s districts that were listed in the National Register of Historic Places through the Society’s efforts included Northwood Historic District, Eastern Enlargement Historic District, and Old Greencastle Historic District, all in Greencastle; Cloverdale Historic District; Bainbridge Historic District; Russellville Historic District; and Roachdale Historic District.

The Society received a Historic Preservation Fund Grant in 2010 to assist with the Greencastle districts and again in 2016 to help fund restoration and maintenance of the Putnam County Civil War Memorial Monument in Forest Hill Cemetery in Greencastle.

The district nominations added more than 850 historic resources to the National Register, making them eligible to apply for financial incentives such as tax credits and grants.