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In 2005, the City of New York issued 1,924 permits for building demolition in Brooklyn, and 1,740 permits for new building construction there, according to the NTHP. In May 2005, the New York City Council approved a rezoning plan for a large section of waterfront. And later in 2005, the Council overturned the city landmark designation of the 1915 Austin, Nichols & Company Warehouse, designed by Cass Gilbert. The National Trust has urged the City of New York to encourage retention and reuse of historic structures, as the City has done in the past.

In Brookline, Massachusetts, a home of one of the greatest American architects is on the market, vulnerable to the whims of any potential buyer. H.H. Richardson lived and worked in the house on Cottage Street from 1874 until he died there in 1886. Located in what is now the Green Hill Historic District, near the home of friend and collaborator Frederick Law Olmsted, the house served as the hub of Richardson's design studio in addition to being his family's home.

From this home and studio, Richardson designed such projects as Sever Hall at Harvard University in Cambridge; Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; the William Watts Sherman House in Newport, Rhode Island; the Glessner House in Chicago; and Trinity Church in Boston — the best-known example of his widely imitated style, Richardsonian Romanesque. Architectural details added to the 1805 "West Indies-style" house indicate that Richardson used his home as a design laboratory to experiment with features he later incorporated into projects for his clients. He also trained younger architects there, such as Stanford White.

Reportedly, the current owner of the Richardson house would like to sell to a preservation-minded buyer, but cannot sustain the property any longer and may accept any sale, opening the possibility of a teardown. The house also requires repairs to address water damage and rot.

In Charleston, South Carolina, the workshop and home of master blacksmith Philip Simmons are also at risk. Hundreds of Simmons's wrought-iron gates decorate the city of Charleston. The 95-year-old artisan boasts an 80-year career, and began creating intricate gates, fences, stair rails, and window grills in the late 1940s. Simmons welcomes students and tourists into his workshop, a lightweight sheet-metal building that requires stabilization to protect it from hurricanes.

Hialeah Park Race Track opened in Hialeah, Florida, in 1925, and became a celebrity hotspot. The horse-racing facility includes a mixture of Mediterranean and Renaissance revival architecture, some by architect Lester W. Geisler. With an infield lake and islands that are home flocks of flamingos — the descendants of the original flock that the park was famous for — the Audubon Society has designated the park a sanctuary for the American Flamingo.

The last race at Hialeah Park was in 2001, and the park closed in 2005 after Hurricane Wilma damaged buildings. In fall 2006, the Hialeah City Council removed the historic designation for the stables, which were then demolished. Now a mixed-used development with 3,760 residential units and nearly 1.2 million square feet (110,000 square meters) of commercial space is planned for the privately owned park.

In contrast to many sites on the National Trust's list, noted for their beauty or splendor, the Minidoka Internment National Monument in Idaho is a record of pain and injustice. During World War II, the Minidoka Relocation Center held 13,000 Japanese-Americans and immigrants of Japanese ancestry from the West Coast.

Although the internment camp was disassembled in 1945, several key structures remain, in addition to archaeological features and cultural landscape elements. Part of the site was designated a National Monument in 2001. Many significant buildings are still located outside the Monument boundary, however. The site is also threatened by the proposed location of a 13,000-head dairy facility about a mile and a quarter (two kilometers) upwind.

In many places in the United States, whole landscapes are threatened by development, some with remnants of human use dating to well before European settlement. In southeastern Colorado, the planned expansion of the U.S. Army's Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site imperils a range of resources, from family farms and ranches to archeological sites spanning 11,500 years. A proposed commercial "spaceport" in New Mexico could compromise a largely untouched section of the El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail.

In the eastern U.S., enormous swaths of land risk devastation because of provisions in the federal Energy Policy Act of 2005. In certain proposed corridors through Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey, "fast-track" processes could allow construction of massive high-voltage electricity transmission towers on public and private land, potentially destroying a host of buildings and rural landscapes, including Civil War battlefiends, National Parks, and historic districts.

In southern Missouri, 19th-century farmsteads and Civilian Conservation Corps-built ranger stations in the Mark Twain National Forest are faltering after years of neglect due to underfunding, making them vulnerable to arson, vandalism, and scavenging. Now the Forest Service plans to remove many structures from federal ownership, putting them in jeopardy.

On a smaller scale, two buildings at Stewart's Point Rancheria in Northern California also suffer from a lack of preservation funding. The Regalia House and the sacred Old Round House, built around 1900 and located on an ancient village site, suffer from vandalism and are in need of repair. A number of federally funded Tribal Historic Preservation Offices exist around the United States to help tribes, such as the Kashia Band of Pomo Indians, preserve historic sites, but these services are suffering from limited funds.

With echoes of its 2006 listing of 1950s Doo-Wop Motels in Wildwood, New Jersey, the National Trust this year named historic motels on Route 66 to its list. Many of these hotels, built between the late 1920s and late 1950s, are being demolished to make way for new development, and others languish in disuse and disrepair.

This year's "Most Endangered" list, announced in June, is the 20th such list that the National Trust has issued to highlight significant heritage sites that are at risk, with the potential for rescue. So far 189 sites have been listed. The effectiveness of these lists is evident in the rescue rate: 52 percent of the sites have been saved and rehabilitated, according to the National Trust, and only six sites have been lost.   >>>

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The National Trust for Historic Preservation provides leadership, education, advocacy, and resources to save diverse historic places in the United States and to revitalize neighborhoods and communities.

SUBSCRIPTION SAMPLE Exterior overview of the H.H. Richardson House in Brookline, Massachusetts, which was named an endangered place by the National Trust. Photo: © David Bohl A bedroom window seat in the former home of H.H. Richardson. Photo: Allan Galper, Historic New England Hall and main stair of the H.H. Richardson House. Photo: Allan Galper, Historic New England The house and workshop of Philip Simmons in Charleston, South Carolina, are at risk of hurricane damage. Photo: Steve Lepre, Philp Simmons Foundation A statue of the race horse Citation stands in front of the clubhouse at Hialeah Park Race Track. A planned mixed-use development on the site would wipe out most of the park. Credit: Alex Fuentes & Janet Diaz This guard house and waiting room are some of the few buildings still standing at Minidoka Internment National Monument in Idaho. A proposed large agricultural development nearby could adversely affect the site. Credit: Elaine Stiles Spanish colonizers first used the El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro trail in 1598, following Native American footpaths and animal trails. Photo: Jean Fulton, El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro Trail Association The Old Store is one of the newer structures at risk from the planned expansion of the U.S. Army's Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site in southeastern Colorado. Photo: National Trust for Historic Preservation   Click on thumbnail images to view full-size pictures.