An important part of what makes Riverside a special place to live is its abundance of historic resources. Preservation of these resources fosters civic and neighborhood pride and forms the basis for identifying and maintaining community character. With this understanding, the City of Riverside has developed a historic preservation program, which is among the most active and well respected in the state of California.

Riverside's commitment to historic preservation began in 1969 with the adoption of a preservation ordinance (Title 20 of the Municipal Code) and creation of the Cultural Heritage Board. Since that time the program has grown to include an ongoing process to survey, record and designate historic resources, an award-winning historic resources inventory database, historic district design guidelines, educational programs, and a historic preservation plan. For over thirty years, the commitment and participation of the City, community organizations, business leaders and homeowners has ensured the success of Riverside's preservation program. The California State Office of Historic Preservation has recognized the program with its designation of Riverside as a Certified Local Government (CLG).

The City also has several museums devoted to the celebration of the heritage of the city-and the entire region for that matter. The Riverside Municipal Museum is a center for learning and a community museum that collects, exhibits and interprets the cultural and natural history of the region. In a rapidly changing community, the museum provides an understanding and appreciation of our region's legacy.

At the Historic Mission Inn Museum one can experience the sights and sounds of turn-of-the-century Riverside at one of the nation's grand hotels. Its collections, gathered from around the world by the hotel's founder, Frank Miller, have adorned the Inn's mix of architectural styles since its earliest days. Many of these artifacts are now housed in the Mission Inn Museum. Lacquered Asian temple guardians, life-sized papal court figures, Arts and Crafts furniture, Spanish and Mexican terra cotta, and hundreds of bells invite one to experience the diverse world cultures that have shaped today's Riverside.

The City also showcases its Citrus Heritage. Recently, the City entered into an unprecedented joint powers agreement with the State of California to operate the California Citrus State Historic Park. The California Citrus State Historic Park preserves some of the rapidly vanishing cultural landscape of the citrus industry, and tells the far-reaching story of this industry and its role in the history of California.