The National Park Service approved the University of Idaho Historic District on Oct. 1, placing roughly 188 acres of the Moscow campus on the National Register of Historic Places.
The designation makes the University of Idaho the first university historic district in Idaho to receive National Register recognition. The area includes academic facilities, residence halls, agricultural buildings and campus landscapes associated with development from 1900 through 1976.
Research Began in 2022
Planning for the nomination started in 2022 and cost less than $20,000. University students and employees supplied several hundred hours of research, documentation and fieldwork.
Nathan Moody, who earned a master’s degree in history from the University of Idaho in 2025, was the principal author of the nomination. The College of Art and Architecture, the College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences, and the U of I Library participated in the work.
The Idaho State Historic Preservation Office reviewed the material and assisted in determining the district’s final boundaries. Alexis Matrone, the office’s outreach historian, said the district is important to both Idaho higher education and historic architecture.
Rebecca Scofield, professor of American history and chair of the university’s history department, said, “History students authored the nomination.”
Renovations Remain Permitted
National Register listing does not bar future renovations within the district. Work involving federal funding or requiring federal approval, however, must go through a preservation review.
Three campus buildings had already received individual National Register listings: the Administration Building, Ridenbaugh Hall and Memorial Gym.
Categories: Education, Community
Tags: Moscow, Latah County, historic district