Texas Preservation Trust Fund

For eligible historic structures, archeological sites, and heritage education projects

The Texas Historical Commission (THC) is accepting Texas Preservation Trust Fund Grant Program applications for fiscal year 2018.

The Texas Historical Commission (THC) awards grants for preservation projects from the Texas Preservation Trust Fund (TPTF). The Texas Legislature established the TPTF in 1989. The fund is currently managed by the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company. Investment earnings are distributed as matching grants to qualified applicants for acquisition, survey, restoration, preservation, planning, and heritage education activities leading to the preservation of historic architectural and archeological properties and associated collections of the State of Texas. Competitive grants are awarded on a one-to-one match basis and are paid as reimbursement of eligible expenses incurred during the project.

The TPTF grant program application process is a two-step process. All applicants are required to submit an application form to the THC for review. The THC selects the highest-priority projects from the initial applications and invites those applicants to move forward to the second step.

Grant awards are typically in the $10,000 - $30,000 range.
To be eligible for grant assistance, applicants must provide a minimum of $1 in cash to match each state dollar of approved project costs. For every $2 spent, $1 is reimbursed, up to the grant amount.
Grant applications are scored in four areas: endangerment, significance, project viability, and special considerations. Review the scoring criteria in the TPTF Grant Program Application Guide (link below).

The Texas Preservation Trust Fund Grant Program is your opportunity to save and protect Texas' threatened historic structures and significant archeological sites. Grant awards may be used for restoration work, architectural planning, archeological investigation, archeology curatorial, preservation planning, resource survey, and heritage education training.

By submitting an application, you are notifying our office of heritage education needs in your community and advising us of endangered historic properties and archeological sites that may soon be lost if this valuable assistance is not provided. We encourage you to submit an application so we may continue to demonstrate the need for our efforts.

FY 2024 Texas Preservation Trust Fund Grant Program

The THC received thirty-seven grant applications on February 6, 2023 for the FY2024 grant cycle. The funds requested for archeology, heritage education, and architecture projects totaled over $1,600,000, including over $760,000 in funds requested as part of FY2024's Panhandle Area and City of Dallas earmarked funds. The FY2024 application period is now closed; the below application guide is now considered an example.

TPTF FY 2024 Grant Program Application Guide (PDF) Sample application only.

SPECIAL FUNDING OPPORTUNITY FOR TEXAS PANHANDLE AND DALLAS-AREA PROJECTS

Beginning with the FY 2024 grant round, the TPTF program will award some funds earmarked exclusively for use in the Texas Panhandle and Dallas. These funds are mitigation for the partial release of preservation covenants held by the THC and must be used to benefit other historic properties in the same geographic area. While all other requirements remain the same, applicants in eligible areas may request larger grant awards than are typically available through the TPTF grant program.

Texas Panhandle

As part of mitigation under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, and in consideration for a partial covenant release, TxDOT allocated $500,000 to the TPTF grant program for the partial acquisition of the former historic Amarillo Helium Plant to use as right-of-way. These funds will provide one-to-one matching grants for eligible projects in TxDOT’s Amarillo District, which includes Armstrong, Carson, Dallam, Gray, Deaf Smith, Hansford, Hartley, Hemphill, Hutchinson, Lipscomb, Moore, Ochiltree, Oldham, Potter, Randall, Roberts, and Sherman counties. The THC anticipates grant awards to be in the $10,000 - $100,000 range.

Dallas

As the result of covenants released on several historic buildings at the Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant (NWIRP) in Dallas, $1,415,924 in funds have been dedicated to the TPTF program for historic preservation projects in the City of Dallas. The total amount of funds available for eligible projects is $1,415,924. The THC anticipates grant awards to be in the $10,000 - $250,000 range. Grants require a one-to-one match.

Please see the sample TPTF FY 2024 Grant Program Application Guide for more information on these special funding opportunities!

Additional TPTF Grant Program Information

Review the Real Places 2021 Show Me The Money presentation for the TPTF Grant Program (PDF). The presentation will help applicants become familiar with the grant program guidelines and scoring criteria. THC staff tips are also included to help applicants submit successful grant applications.