NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Historical Commission announced the 16 recipients of its 2026 Certificate of Merit Awards during a ceremony held May 15 in recognition of National Preservation Month.
The annual awards program, established in 1975, recognizes individuals, organizations, and governmental entities for outstanding contributions to historic preservation and the study of Tennessee history.
“ For the past 51 years our awards program has honored those working to revitalize Tennessee’s historic places,” said Miranda Montgomery, State Historic Preservation Officer and interim executive director of the commission.
Historic Preservation award recipients included the Sgt. Alvin C. York State Historic Park for restoration work on the Honeymoon House, Belmont Mansion for preserving its historic Billiards Room, and the Robertson County Historical Society for restoring the former U.S. Post Office building that now houses the Robertson County History Museum.
Additional preservation honorees included Friends of Two Rivers for restoration efforts at Two Rivers Mansion and Reagan Design + Construction for rehabilitating the historic Vose School in Alcoa through a federal historic tax credit project.
Awards in the Book or Public Programming category recognized projects including “A Century of Health: Transforming Lives in Tennessee,” a traveling exhibit created by the Heritage Center of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County, as well as biographies focused on Chet Atkins and Minnie Pearl.
The Historic Germantown Neighborhood Association was also recognized for its public history program “Preserving Place, Empowering Community: Germantown’s Fight for Its Future,” which highlighted efforts to protect Nashville’s historic Germantown neighborhood from industrial development and displacement.
Special Commendation awards went to the Maury County Historical Society for its county history time capsule project, Dwayne Cole for downtown revitalization efforts in Munford, and Ann and Pat Mann for decades of preservation work in Brownsville.
The commission said nominations for the annual awards are solicited from the public each December and judged by category. Applications for the 2027 Certificate of Merit Awards Program are available on our website.
