Last week, The Newberry Opera House joined a roster of “only a few dozen” buildings in the city wearing its historic status proudly on its architectural sleeve.

City Planner Doug Currier made the estimate of the number of buildings in Newberry displaying the official plaque denoting status on the National Register of Places. This is the step the Opera House took, with city staff and nominal city funding ($90) helping the effort along. Currier also estimates that there are upwards of 270 buildings in the city’s nine historical districts that could qualify for such honors.

The Opera House was actually placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1969. Opera House Director Debra Smith describes the federal status as an official list of buildings “worthy of preservation.”

At the ceremony last week presenting the plaque, local historian Ernie Shealy had precise words about what makes Newberry’s Opera House worthy of preservation, and of being on such a list.

“It’s a landmark in the truest sense of the word,” Shealy said. “You can’t imagine Newberry’s skyline without the Opera House tower pushing up through it.”

The presentation came at the end of National Preservation Month, a recognition marked annually at the federal level in May since 1973. Newberry joined that effort with a resolution this year.

Currier wants to see the city’s historic buildings continue getting recognition for their “worthy of preservation” status. And to this end, has offered to help building owners who think their landmarks might qualify for the registry in navigating the research and paperwork to obtain plaques of their own.