The late American hero and New Concord native, John Glenn, could soon receive the honor of having his childhood home registered as a nationally recognized historic site.

The house is being nominated for the National Register because it is the house most closely associated with John Glenn, according to John and Annie Glenn Museum Director, Debbie Allender.

“He actually lived here from the time the house was built in 1923, when he was just a year old, until he went off to fight in WWII,” said Allender. “His parents lived here until they passed away in ‘66 and ‘71, so they did return often to visit, and John still owned the home until it was turned over to become a museum.”

Since the house was first built, the Glenn home has twice been relocated, once from its original site along U.S. Route 40 overlooking the historic S Bridge when the highway was expanded, and again in 2001 when the house was moved from Friendship Drive to Main Street to become a museum.

Allender has high hopes that the U.S. Department of the Interior will follow the recommendation of the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board to recognize the house nationally.

“It just needs to be here,” said Allender. “People used to come to New Concord and they were disappointed to find nothing for John Glenn, but that’s changed now. We’ve been here for 16 years, and we’ve had close to 100,000 visitors here since we opened. They really enjoy it.”

Allender said the decision should be made by the end of the year.