Description

Historic battlefields and associated sites of armed conflict are powerful reminders of the shared heritage of all Americans. In an ongoing effort to extend the conservation of natural and cultural resources beyond our park boundaries, the National Park Service American Battlefield Protection Program (NPS ABPP) promotes the preservation and interpretation of these important places. NPS ABPP supports community-driven stewardship of historic resources through four grant opportunities: Preservation Planning, Battlefield Restoration, Battlefield Interpretation, and Battlefield Land Acquisition.NPS ABPP administers Battlefield Land Acquisition Grants (BLAG) to assist State and local governments with the preservation of eligible Revolutionary War, War of 1812, and Civil War battlefield lands through acquisition of fee-simple or less-than-fee (easement) interests. Funding for the BLAG program is made available from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and is awarded competitively. Each grant requires a dollar-for-dollar non-Federal match. Grants are available to acquire interests in eligible Civil War battlefields listed in the Civil War sites Advisory Commission's (CWSAC) Report on the Nation's Civil War Battlefields (1993) and in the principal battlefields of the Revolutionary War and War of 1812 identified in NPS ABPP’s Report to Congress on the Historic Preservation of Revolutionary War and War of 1812 Sites in the United States (2007) (Survey Reports).In accordance with 54 U.S.C. § 308103(b), Battlefield Acquisition Grant Program, this funding opportunity is limited to state or local governments. Nonprofit organizations may acquire an interest in an eligible site by partnering in an application from a state or local government which has jurisdiction over the property interest to be acquired. The government agency will be the grant recipient and serve as a pass-through entity for Federal funds to the nonprofit organization (2 C.F.R. § 200.1).Applications are accepted and evaluated on a rolling basis. As our nation approaches the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026, NPS ABPP encourages projects that promote and expand preservation as well as enhance our understanding of the origins of the United States. NPS ABPP BLAG funds may not be used to acquire land or interests in land within the legislative boundary of a unit of the National Park System. Grant recipients are required to provide for public access and enjoyment of lands or interests in lands acquired with NPS ABPP funds in a manner consistent with the preservation goals of the program. Land acquired with these funds will be subject to the LWCF non-conversion requirements. Grant recipients and their nonprofit partners who acquire an interest in eligible lands must convey a perpetual preservation easement on the land to the appropriate State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) or to another organization acceptable to the National Park Service and SHPO.