KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Four historic properties in southwest Michigan were among 27 in the state that were given special recognition in 2021 through their listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
Administered in Michigan by the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), the National Register of Historic Places is the United States federal government’s official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance.
The State Theatre in Kalamazoo leads the list in the area, with the Nettleton-Cond House in St. Joseph County’s Constantine and Hickory Lodge No. 345 in Barry County’s Hickory Corners, as well as the Wayland Historic Commercial District in Allegan County.
More than 96,000 properties across the country, including nearly 2,000 in Michigan, have been listed in the National Register since the program began in the 1960s. The National Register is a program of the National Park Service and is administered by the states.
Each place listed in the National Register is referred to as a “property,” whether it is a single building, site, or structure or a historic district composed of hundreds of individual buildings. In 2021, twenty-three individual properties and four historic districts totaling more than 179 contributing historic resources in Michigan were listed in the National Register.
To be considered for listing in the National Register, a property must generally be at least 50 years old, and must also be significant when evaluated in relationship to major historical events or trends in the history of their community, the state, or the nation. A property must also possess historic integrity – the ability to convey its significance.
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