Applications Open for Preservation Texas Historic Rural Log Building Grant Program
Preservation Texas is now accepting applications for our new Historic Rural Log Building Grant Program, funded by a $750,000 Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grant from the National Park Service.
Pictured: The James Morrison Home in Shelbyville, built in 1858. Fannie Ratchford photograph collection, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Through this competitive program, Preservation Texas will award subgrants ranging from $50,000 to $150,000 to five to seven preservation projects involving historic, pre-1936 log buildings. Eligible properties must be located in rural East Texas communities with populations under 10,000 or previously included on our Most Endangered Places list. Nonprofits, government entities, and private property owners are eligible to apply, but preference will be given to buildings that are, or will be, regularly open to the public.
“Log buildings are essential to understanding early Texas history, and they are becoming increasingly rare,” said Conor Herterich, Preservation Texas's Northeast Texas Program Officer. “We are committed not only to saving the most endangered examples, but also sustaining the craft traditions needed to preserve and maintain them.”
Pictured: Log House located at Highway 348 in Rusk County, 1980. THC Historic Resources Survey Collection. Texas Historical Commission. Hosted by The Portal to Texas History, UNT Libraries.
Applications will be evaluated using a scoring matrix that considers preservation urgency, project readiness, and community impact. All grants require a 25 percent cash match and will be awarded on a reimbursement basis. Funded projects must be fully completed and the property listed on the National Register of Historic Places by March 2028.
“We are proud to be entrusted with this funding in support of endangered log buildings in East Texas,” said Evan Thompson, executive director of Preservation Texas. “As Texas approaches its bicentennial in 2036, many of our earliest log structures are nearing 200 years old. We can’t afford to lose more of them.”
Applications are due by 5:00 p.m. CST on Friday, April 17, 2026. For program guidelines, eligibility requirements, and application information, visit preservationtexas.org/grants.
Pictured: Postcard of the Steiner & Dallmeyer Building in Burton, Texas. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark Files, provided by the THC. Hosted by The Portal to Texas History, UNT Libraries.
