National Historic Landmark Nomination for Tolson’s Chapel, Sharpsburg, Maryland | P17AS00764

Opportunity Information: Apply for P17AS00764

This National Park Service (NPS) funding opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number P17AS00764) is a discretionary cooperative agreement issued by the Department of the Interior to support the preparation of a National Historic Landmark (NHL) nomination for Tolson's Chapel, also known historically as the American Union School, in Sharpsburg, Washington County, Maryland, near Antietam National Battlefield. The intent is to elevate the site from its current recognition on the National Register of Historic Places (listed in 2008) to consideration as an NHL by producing a substantially revised and strengthened nomination that can stand up to national-level evaluation.

Tolson's Chapel is a modest, one-room, highly intact historic building constructed in 1865-1866 that played an important dual role in African American community life during and after the Civil War. From 1868 to 1870 it served as a Freedmen's Bureau School, and for more than a century after construction it functioned as a local African American Methodist church, remaining in religious use until 1998. The NPS views the property as potentially able to illustrate or interpret major themes in United States history, particularly the Reconstruction era, but notes that the existing 2008 documentation needs revisions and expanded context so the site's significance can be evaluated convincingly within a national framework rather than primarily a local or state one.

The core work funded under this award is the development of an NHL nomination that documents the property's physical and historical significance at the level required for landmark designation. On the documentation side, the nomination must include a clear architectural description and an inventory of resources on the property, not only the building itself but also relevant landscape features and characteristics. On the historical analysis side, it must provide a general development history for the property while focusing most heavily on the significance statements. The NPS emphasizes that the goal is not to produce an exhaustive narrative of design and construction, but to assemble the research and evaluation needed to identify events, activities, and associations that have clear importance to national history and to argue that the property has "exceptional value or quality" in representing the heritage of the United States.

A key expectation is that the nomination will explicitly situate Tolson's Chapel within the broader scholarship and interpretive framing of Reconstruction, using the national context provided by the NHL theme study Era of Reconstruction, 1861-1900 (Downs and Masur, forthcoming). The anticipated area of significance is history under NHL Criterion 1, meaning the nomination should make a direct, well-supported case that the site's associations meaningfully illuminate nationally significant historical patterns or developments, especially those connected to African American education, community institution-building, and post-emancipation life in the Reconstruction period.

This opportunity is also notable because it is not an open competition. It is issued as a Notice of Intent to Award, described as public notice of the NPS intention to fund the specified project activities without full and open competition, rather than a request for applications. The award information indicates a single expected award with an award ceiling of $28,733. Eligible applicants are listed as nonprofits that do not have 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education), under CFDA 15.945, and the activity category is identified as science and technology and other research and development, reflecting the research-intensive nature of producing a defensible national-level historic designation dossier.

Finally, collaboration is built into the project design. In cooperation with the NPS and the local stewards of the site, Friends of Tolson's Chapel, the Organization of American Historians (OAH) and the assigned researcher are expected to identify and consult with scholars who have relevant expertise. The purpose of these consultations is to strengthen the interpretation, test the nomination's claims against current scholarship, and build perspective and consensus around the property's historical significance, improving the likelihood that the final nomination is clear, credible, and persuasive at the national level.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "National Historic Landmark Nomination for Tolson’s Chapel, Sharpsburg, Maryland" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.945.
• This funding opportunity was created on Aug 31, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 10, 2017 This funding opportunity is to provide public notice of NPSs intention to fund the following project activities without full and open competition. Notice of Intent to Award, not a request for applications. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $28,733.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.

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