The National Register of Historic Places

National Register plaque for Puerco Ruin and Petroglyphs

Photo by Marge Post/NPS

Did you know there are nearly 78,000 listings on the National Register of Historic Places? This is one of the nation's official lists of cultural resources designated worthy of preservation. Authorized under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Register coordinates and supports both public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect our historic and archeological resources. Properties listed in the National Register include districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects that are significant to American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture.

Within Petrified Forest National Park, nine sites are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. These include:

• Agate House Pueblo (October 6, 1975)
• Painted Desert Inn* (and associated cabins) (October 10, 1975)
• Painted Desert Petroglyphs and Ruins Archeological District (June 24, 1976)
• Newspaper Rock Petroglyphs Archeological District (July 12, 1976)
• Puerco Ruins and Petroglyphs (July 12, 1976)
• Flattops Site (archeological site) (July 12, 1976)
• Twin Buttes Archeological District (July 12, 1976)
• 35th Parallel Route (also known as the Beale Camel Trail) (December 6, 1977)
• Painted Desert Community Complex Historic District (April 15, 2005)

* Painted Desert Inn was upgraded to a National Historic Landmark on May 28, 1987.

Here are some site bulletins that you might find interesting:
(* Use the Adobe PDF file for a print friendly version.)

• Archeology (view) (PDF)
• Messages on Stone (view) (PDF)
• Painted Desert Inn (view) (PDF)

Do you have any historic sites in your hometown on the National Register of Historic Places?