Senator Charles E. Schumer

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 10, 2008

SCHUMER ANNOUNCES $240,000 "SAVE AMERICA'S TREASURES" GRANT TO PROTECT AND PRESERVE THE OLD FORT NIAGARA SITE IN YOUNGSTOWN

Federal Grant Awarded for Preservation and Conservation of National Historic Sites

Funds Will Be Used for Structural Repairs to Famous Structure in Niagara County

Schumer: Old Fort Niagara is a National Treasure

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today announced that the Old Fort Niagara Site has been awarded a $240,000 grant from the National Park Service for preservation and conservation of the site. The Federal Save America’s Treasures program is one of the largest and most successful grant programs for the protection of the nation’s irreplaceable and endangered cultural heritage. Funds will be used for structural repairs to the Old Niagara Fort.

“Old Fort Niagara is a national treasure and this grant will go a long way in helping to preserve it for generations to come,” said Schumer. “The Fort is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the Niagara area and boasts both the oldest buildings in the Great Lakes and spectacular scenery. It is critical that we protect these national structures and I will continue to support programs that help preserve our nation’s history.”

Old Fort Niagara is a National Historic Landmark and New York State Historic Site that welcomes more than 100,000 visitors every year. It offers a unique collection of original military architecture and fortifications from the 18th Century and the 19th Century, as well as living history events and programs, historical exhibits and collections, archaeology, and education.

The French, the British, the United States, and the Iroquois Confederacy competed for control of the Old Fort Niagara site during the French & Indian War, the Revolutionary War, and the War of 1812. Old Fort Niagara has endured a number of serious threats to its infrastructure throughout its historic complex, which includes six original 18^th Century military structures. Grant funding from the Save America’s Treasures program will be used to address structural repairs to the National Historic Landmark in Niagara County.

Save America’s Treasures Grants are available for preservation and conservation work on nationally significant intellectual and cultural artifacts and historic structures and sites. Intellectual and cultural artifacts include artifacts, collections, documents, sculpture, and works of art. Historic structures and sites include historic districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects. The grants are awarded to Federal, state, local, and tribal government entities, and non-profit organizations through a competitive matching-grant program, administered by the National Park Service in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.