A National Heritage Area is a place designated by Congress where natural, cultural, historic and scenic resources combine to form a cohesive, nationally distinctive landscape arising from patters of human activity shaped by geography. In other words, it is a place where the history, scenery or culture is so significant that it deserves national recognition.

The Northern Plains National Heritage Area encompasses the 80-mile free-flowing stretch of the Missouri River between the Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site and the Huff Indian Village State Historic Site in North Dakota, and includes sites in Burleigh, Morton, Mercer, McLean and Oliver counties.

The National Heritage Area program is overseen by the National Parks Service. Follow the link below to learn more about the various heritage areas across the country...

Northern Plains Heritage Foundation

The NPHF is the non-profit 501(c)3 organization that functions as the coordinating entity for the Northern Plains National Heritage Area, as designated by Congress in the Omnibus Land Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-11).

Founded in 2005, the NPHF was responsible for conducting a feasibility study to justify the creation of the Northern Plains National Heritage Area. The feasibility study (available on our 'Documents' page) was submitted to Congress in March 2007.

With the designation of the NPNHA, the NPHF was charged with writing a management plan for the Heritage Area. The management plan must identify ways in which the federal funds will be matched, as well as the guidelines the NPHF will follow when awarding grants, and anything else deemed important to the successful management of the Heritage Area.

Since March 2009, the NPHF has been conducting public meetings to gather input from residents living within the Heritage Area. That public input is a vital component of the management plan because, ultimately, the goal of NPNHA is to benefit the residents of the area.

Click here to read the Northern Plains Heritage Foundation's by-laws...

Board of Directors

President: David Borlaug

Vice President: Signe Snortland

Treasurer: Paul Trauger

Secretary: Keith Ulmer

Past President: Sarah Vogel

Elwood Barth

Brian Bitner

Kelvin Hullet

Wally Joersz

Rose Lansing

Dr. Kermit Lidstrom

Richard Tokach

Melanie Luger

Ex Officio Members

Sarah Otte Coleman

Scott Davis

Brian McCutcheon

Merlan E. Paaverud

Mark Zimmerman