The Idaho Heritage Trust aims to preserve Idaho’s rich cultural history through grants and technical assistance, supporting preservation efforts across the state. This initiative celebrates the legacy of ancestors, enriches the present, and ensures the heritage of Idaho is maintained for future generations.
The grant program by the Idaho Heritage Trust focuses on the preservation of historic buildings, sites, and artifact collections throughout Idaho. It is primarily funded through proceeds from a special license plate program, with fifty cents from each standard Idaho plate contributing to an endowment fund. The earnings from this fund, supplemented by local community contributions, finance the preservation efforts. Since its inception in 1989, the Trust has allocated over $3 million in grants and provided essential technical advice, benefiting projects in every county of Idaho, with a significant focus on aiding smaller communities of 5,000 residents or fewer.
The Trust is dedicated to safeguarding Idaho's historical essence, focusing on projects that ensure the protection of historical structures and artifacts. Funded initiatives may encompass physical restoration efforts to maintain the structural integrity and authenticity of historical buildings, including the use of period-specific materials and preservation of distinctive elements. Additionally, support is available for architectural or engineering designs aimed at historical preservation, as well as the conservation of significant historical objects. For further insight into our funding scope, we encourage reviewing the Champion Heritage That Matters page, which showcases examples of recently supported projects.