Every year, millions of people visit America’s historic monuments, both natural and man-made structures, to see and pay tribute to our rich and difficult history. However, the beginning of hurricane as well as wildfire seasons, while many of us have the chance of playing tourist, is also a warning that the tangible markers of our history are at peril from the consequences of a changing climate.
Historic sites, like records, diaries, and letters, are primary sources. They provide information about ourselves. They also inform us about our country’s complicated and interconnected shared narrative.
US Historical Sites that are in Danger
Here are some historic sites that are in grave danger.
1. Jamestown
Low-lying terrain Jamestown is covered with water on three sides. In 2022, visitors will be able to explore the ruins of the old British fort, as well as the small settlement that sprang up around it, thanks to a partnership between the National Park Service & Historic Jamestowne, a charitable group.
2. Olivewood Cemetery
Olivewood, Houston’s earliest plotted Black cemetery, was founded in 1875, ten years after Texas abolished chattel slavery. Storms and flooding are causing the soil and gravesites to erode, but it seems that the National Trust for Historic Preservation designated it as a most endangered place this year.
3. New Mexico Monuments
Wildfires powered by excessive heat and drought pose the greatest threat to this landscape, not water or storms. As of late May, practically the whole state of New Mexico was dealing with serious or exceptional drought, contributing to one of the state’s worst fire years ever.