Welcome to 40 Under 40 Places—40 of the most important, most interesting, and quirkiest American places 40 years old or less, compiled by the staff of Preservation magazine. The by-no-means comprehensive list includes sites both well-known and obscure, high-end and low-budget, and urban and rural.

Places typically aren’t considered historic until they’ve been around for at least 50 years, so why highlight younger sites now? Because by looking at them through a preservation lens and identifying places worthy of saving before they become truly historic, we can be proactive about their futures.