NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Wars Commission, the Tennessee Historical Commission division responsible for preserving the state’s significant military history, has announced the September 1, 2025 opening of this year’s grant cycle for the Tennessee Wars Commission Grant Fund. This year $69,700 is available for grants. Last year, the Wars Commission awarded $114,500 in grant funding for projects ranging from an archaeological survey to support for a documentary, as well as interpretive signage for several sites.
Since 1994, this grant program has funded approximately one hundred twenty-eight different projects preserving and interpreting the military legacy of Tennessee and Tennesseans. “The Wars Commission Grant Fund provides a unique opportunity for Tennessee communities to enhance their war-related history through the preservation, interpretation, and archaeology of sites, structures, and battlefields related to the French and Indian War through the Civil War era, furthering our collective knowledge of these historical locations and events,” said Wars Commission Program Director, Nina Scall.
The Tennessee Wars Commission Grant Fund provides financial support to coordinate planning, preservation, protection, promotion, and interpretation of structures, buildings, sites, and battlefields related to Tennessee’s military heritage. This grant can fund a wide variety of projects relating to the French and Indian War (1754-1763), the Revolutionary War (1776-1783), War of 1812 (1812-1815), Mexican-American War (1846-1848), and the Civil War (1861-1865). Example projects include, but are not limited to, archaeological surveys and excavations, cemetery preservation, contraband camp preservation and interpretation, graphic displays and interpretative panels, historic markers, master plans and foundation documents, and living history and educational programs.
Any individual, museum, educational institution, private organization, or local government body can apply. Although there is no minimum matching requirement, applicant contributions will be a positive consideration.
The deadline for submissions is November 21, 2025. The grant application process is digital. Create an account and complete the application at https://tdec.smartsimple.com/s_Login.jsp.
For questions regarding the grant process or application procedure, contact Nina Scall, Program Director of the Tennessee Wars Commission via email at Nina.Scall@tn.gov. More information is available on the Tennessee Historical Commission website.