Preservation of the historic heritage in USA

Through this article we would like to present, in first of all for the Moldovan audience, the experience of the US in the field of cultural heritage preservation. In the first part of the study is analysed the development of the federal legal framework and presented the most important acts, such as Antiquity Act-1906, The Historic Sites Act (HSA)-1935, The National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA)-1966, The Archaeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA)-1979, The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)-1990. In the paper also are mentioned other federal laws and presidential executive orders which are directly linked with the heritage preservation.

During the second part of the article is shortly presented the US federal infrastructure responsible for the cultural and natural heritage management. The most important institutions are the governmental one (Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP), National Park Service (NPS) and other federal agencies, Federal Preservation Institute, Historic Preservation Officer, National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers etc. Also, are presented the principles of function of the National Register of Historic Places, in criteria and rules for eligibility for inclusion the historic sites in the National Register. In the US a very important role in the preservation historic heritage are playing the NGOs. At the national level the most active Smithsonian Institution, National Trust for Historic Preservation, US/ICOMOS, Society for American Archaeology (SAA), Archaeological Institute of America (AIA), Society for Historical Archaeology (SHA), The Archaeological Conservancy (AC), National Preservation Institute (NPI) etc.

In conclusion, we could say that during one hundred years the US reached a viable legal and administrative framework, based in first of all on education of the citizens, which could be a good example for many countries around the World.