Welcome
The Rhode Island Historical Preservation & Heritage Commission is the state agency dedicated to safeguarding and celebrating the history of all Rhode Islanders statewide.
The commission (aka the State Historic Preservation Office) serves as a regulatory body, research team, advisor to residents and businesses, and convener of important conversations. We work with anyone who is curious about the buildings, historic sites, cultural landscapes, and intangible heritage that make Lil' Rhody distinct. From Adamsville to Westerly, the state is bursting with historic places, and we're Rhode Island's history & heritage people.
Documenting Modern Disability Design in RI
We are looking for proposals from qualified preservation consultants to prepare a National Register of Historic Places nomination for ILZRO House in Foster, Rhode Island. The property is a modernist industrialized housing prototype and early experiment in Disability Design completed in 1976 by RISD students and faculty for a studio sponsored by the International Lead Zinc Research Organization (ILZRO).
READ THE RFP. Proposals are due November 25, 2025.
The effort is funded by the NPS Underrepresented Communities Grant Program -- and is the first project in the history of the NPS grant program to represent the history of Americans with disabilities, “the largest minority in the United States."
ILZRO House
News & Notices
- Insuring National Register Properties
- RI250 Funding Available Applications open thru January
Next Commission Meeting: November 12
Next State Review Board Meeting: December 8
NOTICE: Old State House Closed
The Old State House at 150 Benefit Street is currently under construction and closed until early spring 2026. The RIHPHC staff remains active, working from a temporary office until construction is complete, but visitors and researchers should be advised that the building and a good portion of our files and records are inaccessible.
