Protection of the nation's heritage is an essential part of the Department of the Navy (DON) mission – defense of the people, territory, institutions and heritage of the United States. According to SECNAVINST 4000.35B, Section 4.a, "The DON owns historic buildings, structures, districts, archeological sites and artifacts, historic ships and aircraft, and other cultural resources. Protection of these components of the nation's heritage is an essential part of the defense mission; the DON is committed to responsible cultural resources stewardship." SECNAVINST 4000.35B establishes policy and assigns responsibilities within the Navy and United States Marine Corps for fulfilling legally mandated cultural resources compliance requirements.
In accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act, the Secretary of the Navy designates a Federal Preservation Officer (FPO) to coordinate DON activities under the Act. The FPO receives direction from the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations and Environment. The position of FPO is currently held by Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Environment & Mission Readiness) Mr. Karnig Ohanneessian. The Deputy Federal Preservation Officer is Mr. William Manley.
The DON Cultural Resources Program is administered by the office of the FPO with NAVFAC’s regional field offices carrying out implementation. There are several categories of cultural resources that fall under naval stewardship – please click on the links in the menu to the left to learn more about the different property types within each of these categories and how the Navy manages them.
Historic ships and aircraft, including wreck sites, are managed by the Naval History and Heritage Command – please visit their webpage for additional information on their programs.
For additional information on cultural resources, the Department of the Navy, and related topics, please refer to these other web sites:
US Navy - http://www.navy.mil/
US Marine Corps - http://www.marines.mil
Department of Navy Issuances - https://www.secnav.navy.mil/doni/allinstructions.aspx
Navy Training Courses - https://www.netc.navy.mil/Commands/Center-for-Seabees-and-Facilities-Engineering/Naval-Civil-Engineer-Corps-Officers-School/Courses/Environmental-Conservation/
AASHTO Center for Environmental Excellence - https://environment.transportation.org/education/practical-applications/protecting-cultural-resources/protecting-cultural-resources-transportation/
Advisory Council on Historic Preservation - http://www.achp.gov/
National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers - https://www.nathpo.org/
National Center for Preservation Technology and Training - https://home.nps.gov/subjects/ncptt/index.htm
National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers - https://ncshpo.org/
National Park Service Cultural Resource, Partnerships, and Science Directorate - http://www.nps.gov/orgs/1345/whatwedo.htm
National Park Service Archeology Program Technical Briefs - https://www.nps.gov/orgs/1038/technical-briefs.htm
National Park Service Federal Historic Preservation Laws, Regulations, and Orders - https://www.nps.gov/subjects/historicpreservation/laws.htm
National Park Service Technical Preservation Services Preservation Briefs - https://www.nps.gov/tps/how-to-preserve/briefs.htm
National Preservation Institute - http://www.npi.org
Office of the Secretary of Defense Cultural Resources Program - https://denix.osd.mil/cr/
Office of the Secretary of Defense Native American Affairs - https://www.denix.osd.mil/na/home/index.html
Office of the Secretary of Defense Native Hawaiian Affairs Program - https://www.denix.osd.mil/na/hawaii/