Historic American Buildings Survey

In December 1933, NPS established the Historic American Buildings Survey, based on a proposal by Charles E. Peterson of the NPS. It was initially founded as a constructive make-work program for architects, draftsmen and photographers left jobless by the Great Depression. Guided by field instructions from Washington, D.C., the first HABS recorders were tasked with documenting a representative sampling of America's architectural heritage. By creating an archive of historic architecture, HABS provided a database of primary source material and documentation for the then-fledgling historic preservation movement. Today, the program is administered by cooperative agreements between the NPS, the Library of Congress, and various private sector groups.