Preservation Action @ 50

In 2024, we are celebrating 50 years since the founding of Preservation Action as the national lobby for historic preservation.

A plaque located at the San Antonio Conservation Society headquarters in San Antonio, Texas, commemorating the initial meeting between Beverly Blount Hemphill and Tersh Boasberg that led to the founding of Preservation Action.

TIMELINE OF PRESERVATION ACTION THROUGH THE DECADES

1970s

  • Founded 1974 by DC-based attorney Tersh Boasberg and Beverly Blount Hemphill (San Antonio Conservation Society – San Antonio, TX), who later formed a small coalition with Arthur Ziegler (President of Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation- Pittsburgh, PA), J. Reid Williamson (Executive Director of Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana- Indianapolis, IN), Leopold Adler, II (Historic Savannah-Savannah, GA), St. Clair Wright, President of Historic Annapolis- Annapolis, MD) to promote preservation at the federal level. 
  • PA appointed its first official president Nellie Longsworth in 1975. Under her leadership, PA helped pass the 1976 Federal Historic Tax law incentive; a credit which saved many historic buildings throughout the country.
  • 1977 the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) is established to support the vision and framework of the National Historic Preservation Act.

1980s

  • Nellie and Preservation Action’s grassroots advocacy is instrumental in establishing the Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit in 1986.

1990s

  • Launched a campaign to enact the Historic Homeowners Assistance Act in 1997
  • Founded the Center for Preservation Initiatives (dba Preservation Action Foundation) to be the 501(c)3 charitable arm for PA in 1998
  • Nellie Longsworth retires and is honored on the House of Representatives floor

2000s

  • 2007 Nellie receives Crowninshield award from the National Trust for Historic Preservation

2010s

  • 2015 former Congressman Russ Carnahan hired as PA President.
  • 2017 PA and our partners fight to save the Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit from near elimination.
  • PA establishes the 2017 Nellie Longsworth Award for Outstanding Leadership.

2020s

  • 2021 Nellie Longsworth passed away at the age of 87. PA establishes the Nellie Longsworth Memorial Fund.
  • Long-time PA supporter and employee Bruce MacDougal passes away in 2022, and the PAF Advocacy Scholars program is renamed in his honor.
  • 2023 thanks to consistent advocacy the HPF receives record funding levels for the 8th consecutive year.
  • 2024 PA board passes resolution to launch the Preservation Action Political Action Committee.
Rhonda Sincavage and then-president, Susan West Montgomery, with First Lady Laura Bush

“If you go to Capitol Hill with Nellie Longsworth, be sure to wear comfortable shoes.”

In 2024, we are celebrating fifty years of boots-on-the-ground lobbying on Capitol Hill, coalition-building in the historic preservation community, and the foundational Advocacy Week. We can trumpet many successes over just this past year, but the next year’s challenges are momentous — and we need your continued support. 

We invite you to join us in supporting the cause for the next 50 years:

  1. Help us celebrate, tag us in your posts with your PA memories
  2. Help us launch the Preservation Action Political Action Committee
  3. Donate to our ‘74 Legacy Circle