Houston’s Astrodome and the Gay Head lighthouse on Martha’s Vineyard are two of 11 endangered places to be cited Wednesday by the National Trust for Historic Preservation on its annual list of sites at risk of damage or destruction.
The Astrodome was the world’s first domed indoor, air conditioned stadium when it opened in 1965. Nicknamed the Eighth Wonder of the World, it became one of the most influential stadiums in the United States, but is now shuttered and professional baseball and football in the city are played in newer venues.
Also endangered, according to the trust, is the Mountain View Black Officers’ Club at Fort Huachua in Arizona, which was built in 1942 specifically for African-American officers but now faces demolition.
The Gay Head lighthouse, the first lighthouse built on Martha’s Vineyard, is threatened by erosion, the trust said.
Also on the trust’s list is Pan American’s Worldport Terminal at Kennedy Airport, an architectural symbol of the 1960s jet age.
Each year the trust selects what it considers important examples of the nation’s architectural, cultural and natural heritage that are at risk of being destroyed or irreparably damaged.
“For more than a quarter century, our list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places has called attention to threatened one-of-a-kind treasures throughout the nation and has galvanized local preservationists to help save them,†said Stephanie Meeks, president of the trust in a statement.
More than 240 sites have been highlighted on the list in the past 26 years, the trust says, and over that period only a handful of listed s! ites have been lost.
