Programs and Services
Incentive Programs
Certified Local Governments
Certified Local Governments (CLGs) are partners with the federal government and the State Historic Preservation Office at the local level. CLGs promote preservation at the grass roots level and reflect best preservation practices.
Historic Preservation Tax Credits
Forms, instructions, and other guidance for the federal and new state historic preservation tax credit program. Note that new federal application forms are effective February 26, 2021.
Michigan Lighthouse Assistance Program
The Lighthouse Assistance Program promotes and supports the preservation of Michigan Lighthouses and Michigan's coastal maritime heritage through awareness and grants.
Survey & Designation
Historic Resource Survey Program
Surveys of architecture, archaeology and other historic resources support the identification and protection of Michigan's cultural heritage.
Local Historic Districts
Local historic district designation provides legal protection to historic resources by requiring that proposed work to a property in the district be reviewed by a Historic District Commission using national standards.
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register is the official list of the Nation's historic buildings, structures, objects, and archaeological sites worthy of preservation. This page contains documents, forms, guidance, and instructions for nominating a site to the National Register in Michigan.
National Historic Landmarks
National Historic Landmarks are nationally significant historic places designated by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior because they possess exceptional value or quality in illustrating or interpreting the heritage of the United States. Explore Michigan's 43 designated NHL resources here.
Success Stories & Projects
Michigan Civil Rights Project
An NPS-funded project to identify and document significant sites related to the African American civil rights movement of the twentieth century.
Governor's Awards for Historic Preservation
The annual Governor's Awards recognize outstanding historic preservation achievements reflecting a commitment to the preservation of Michigan’s neighborhoods, downtowns, and countryside, the state’s unique character, and the preservation of cultural resources that document Michigan’s past.
Preservation Case Studies
Preservation Case Studies and examples of successful historic preservation projects from across Michigan.
Michigan Modern
A signature SHPO documentation and interpretation project that studies Michigan's legacy of Modernism and Modern-inspired design in the mid-20th Century.