Each year the Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation honors individuals, organizations, & businesses for their impactful efforts to save historic places, build pride, & foster engagement in their communities. Awardees have been nominated & selected based on:
Nominations for the 2026 Louisiana Preservation Awards will open soon.
Recognizes the efforts of an individual that made a significant contribution to historic preservation in Louisiana.
In her time as the Ruston Main Street Director, Cultural District liaison, & the City’s Community Coordinator, Amy was instrumental in the growth of Downtown Ruston while advocating for the preservation of its historic assets & connecting property owners of historic buildings to financial incentives to spur the restoration & development of mixed-use & commercial spaces. Through collaborative efforts, she successfully championed for increased funding for Louisiana Main Street & the statewide historic downtowns they represent. Amy’s passion & dedication for her community has helped Downtown Ruston earn state & national recognition for its revitalization efforts & commitment to historic preservation.
Recognizes an individual or individuals who have made a lasting impact to the historic resources of Louisiana through a body of work.
Donna & Rick Richard have demonstrated their commitment to historic preservation by taking structures that embody the spirit & character of Lake Charles, repurposing & promoting each as treasures to the southwest Louisiana region. Their continuous leadership on a local & state level encourages future preservation & expansion of Lake Charles’ historic inventory. They continue to make significant investments of time, talent, & money into saving landmarks like the Calcasieu National Bank Building & numerous others. Additional historic assets are being identified for preservation with the adoption of the new Ryan Street Historic District, which likely would not have happened if not for the investment of the Richards.
Recognizes exemplary historic preservation, restoration, rehabilitation, & reconstruction projects that adhere to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards.
Constructed in 1932, the fieldhouse served as a campus gathering place for socializing, events, & recreational sports. The design team of Baton Rouge-based RHH Architects & Tipton Associates investigated the original construction & worked with restoration contractors to properly remediate & restore architectural & decorative elements to lend the aura of the 1930s & 40s upon entering the building.
Recognizes exemplary historic preservation, restoration, rehabilitation, & reconstruction projects that adhere to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards.
Lincoln Avenue Communities completed a substantial renovation of Tivoli Place, a 163-unit affordable housing community serving elderly residents in the heart of New Orleans, aimed at increasing quality of life, enhancing the diversity & quality of New Orleans’s housing inventory, & fortifying future affordability in the city. Strategically layering multiple sources of financing, including tax credits & HUD financing, allowed LAC to develop a master lease structure for the project to obtain both federal & state historic tax credits as well as federal low-income housing tax credits.
Recognizes outstanding works published or produced within the last two years on Louisiana historic preservation themes, topics, issues, projects, or local history & architecture.
“Ancestral Artistry” is the latest documentary film from the Louisiana Architecture Foundation & explores the critical role Africans & Creoles of Color played in defining Louisiana’s architecture over the past four hundred years. It follows members of the New Orleans Master Crafts Guild as they use their crafts in masonry, blacksmith, & plaster to restore a society tomb. The film highlights the personal attachment to traditional trades which many families have & the importance of passing along this knowledge to future generations. Visit LouisianaArchitecture.org to learn more.
Recognizes an organization that successfully leveraged assets to provide greater cultural value to its region within the state such as a heritage tourism project or restoration/preservation effort such as adaptive reuse.
The Pointe Coupee Historical Society has demonstrated an outstanding commitment to historic preservation through its ongoing initiatives centered around the preservation & adaptive reuse of the historic Poydras High School, securing critical funding for preservation efforts & transforming the space into a vibrant hub of community engagement while honoring the building’s storied past. Their work not only safeguards the past but also ensures that the history of Pointe Coupee Parish remains a living, celebrated part of the present & future.
Recognizes achievements in the promotion & preservation of Louisiana’s multicultural or underserved heritage.
Erica is the founder of Maison Creole de Freetown, Lafayette’s first & only African American history museum & cultural center & home to Attakapas Collective, a BIPOC collaborative co-op of traditional & folk artisans of color. She contributed to Lafayette’s newest African American heritage trail, creating an interactive history map for the Freetown neighborhood, a nationally registered historic district & descendant community. Erica is a pillar within the Lafayette community for preservation of the diverse voices within Louisiana.
Recognizes individuals that have continued to use a traditional technique or method in construction, considered both artistic in nature & rare in today’s construction practices, to achieve authenticity in the preservation, restoration, or reconstruction of historic resources in Louisiana.
Darryl Reeves is owner of Andrews Welding & Blacksmith Shop in the Seventh Ward of New Orleans. One of the most important tools he uses is the experience & knowledge of two previous generations of his family in the blacksmith & metalworking trades. In 2012, he co-founded the New Orleans Master Crafts Guild with John Hankins & Jeff Poree, Master Platerer & winner of the 2024 Living Trades Award.
Recognizes a Main Street community that exemplifies the strategic use of creativity, historic preservation, &/or culture to build a climate for cultural expression, improve quality of life, enhance existing assets, & strengthen economic opportunity while representing the quality of the area.
A 2025 Main Street America® Nationally Accredited program, Winnsboro Main Street has created an environment for collaborative growth, engaging the community through various cultural events, & has championed the vital role of the Main Street program in historic preservation & economic development. One of six statewide participants in the Thriving Communities program, they will receive technical assistance over the next 2+ years to drive local infrastructure development.
Recognizes an individual that is making or has made a significant contribution to the advocacy &/or promotion of historic preservation or the development of his or her cultural discipline in a community, region, or state.
As Director of the Lincoln Parish Museum & Historical Society, Rick has been instrumental in the continued growth of the organization, creating the Lincoln Legacy Award to honor influential community members, establishing the Blueseum Fest to showcase local blues musicians, & generating a twenty-five percent increase in donor support.
Recognizes an individual or organization that, through educational efforts, helped broaden appreciation for the importance of historic preservation in Louisiana.
Since 2020, the Claiborne Parish Library has hosted local researchers to document the parish’s history, publishing 10 books, including an annual series, “Historic Claiborne”, capturing stories from local authors. The Library established a free, online database of historic documents & photographs, making 20,000+ images of local history available to the public after decades of being stored away & inaccessible. Historical markers of notable people & places have been erected across Claiborne Parish through the Library’s extensive research & fundraising efforts.
