TIME Environment

These Are America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places

FILE - This June 22, 2016, file photo, shows the "House on Fire" ruins in Mule Canyon, near Blanding, Utah. Bears Ears in Southeastern Utah made The National Trust for Historic Preservation's 2016 list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places, an annual list that spotlights important examples of the nation’s architectural and cultural heritage that are at risk of destruction or irreparable damage. "House on Fire" is located within The 1.9 million-acre Bears Ears cultural landscape. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)
Rick Bowmer—AP The "House on Fire" ruins in Mule Canyon, located within the 1.9 million-acre Bears Ears cultural landscape in Utah, on June 22, 2016.

From domes in Milwaukee to a steamboat in Louisiana

When Americans hear the word “endangered,” they might think of frogs and bees. But some of America’s historic spaces are endangered, too.

The National Trust’s 29th annual list of America’s most endangered historical spaces includes everything from a district in San Francisco threatened by rising sea levels to an empty building at Lincoln University in Lincoln, Pa.

Take a look at the list below to see which places are most endangered, and what is threatening them.

Austin’s Lions Municipal Golf Course
Austin, Texas
Considered the first Southern municipal golf club to de-segregate, the course is under pressure from developers.

Azikiwe-Nkrumah Hall at Lincoln University
Lincoln, Pa.
Lincoln University was the first degree-granting college for African Americans, and its oldest building now stands empty and would require significant work to restore it to working conditions.

Bears Ears
Southeastern Utah.
The two buttes on 1.9 million-acres are home to petroglyphs, ancient roads and other historical sites that are threatened by poor management, pressure from energy developers and even looting.

Charleston Naval Hospital District
North Charleston, S.C.
During WWII, this neighborhood was a primary re-entry point for American service members injured in Europe and Africa. Now, a proposed rail line threatens to run through it.

Delta Queen
Houma, La.
The 1926 sternwheel steamboat is slated for repairs and awaiting federal legislation that would allow it to return to use as an overnight passenger ship.

El Paso’s Chihuahuita and El Segundo Barrio Neighborhoods
El Paso, Texas
These two historic neighborhoods may face demolition that would affect homes and small businesses.

Historic Downtown Flemington
Flemington, N.J
The Union Hotel and several other historic buildings may be demolished if a development proposal goes through in the town that hosted the “Trial of the Century” for the kidnapping of Charles Lindbergh’s baby.

James River
James City County, Va.
A proposed transmission line could affect the vistas at this river, on whose banks the settlement of Jamestown was built in 1607.

Milwaukee’s Mitchell Park Domes
Milwaukee, Wis.
The three domes, built about 50 years ago, have become dilapidated and require heavy funding to be repaired.

San Francisco Embarcadero
San Francisco, Calif.
Tourists and locals alike revere the waterfront area, but rising sea levels and seismic concerns mean the site’s preservation will need careful consideration.

Sunshine Mile
Tucson, Ariz.
A two-mile stretch of historic properties could be demolished if a transportation project is approved.

Tap to read full story

Your browser is out of date. Please update your browser at http://update.microsoft.com


YOU BROKE TIME.COM!

Dear TIME Reader,

As a regular visitor to TIME.com, we are sure you enjoy all the great journalism created by our editors and reporters. Great journalism has great value, and it costs money to make it. One of the main ways we cover our costs is through advertising.

The use of software that blocks ads limits our ability to provide you with the journalism you enjoy. Consider turning your Ad Blocker off so that we can continue to provide the world class journalism you have become accustomed to.

The TIME Team