The Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area, authorized by Congress in 2009, has been designated a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, an official with the Trust announced Monday night.

“We’ve got just 49 National Heritage Areas and 33 National Treasures. There’s only one place that’s both — and that’s the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area,” said John Hildreth, vice president for Eastern Field Services for the National Trust, at a community forum held at the Vicksburg National Military Park.

The designation will allow the Trust, a privately funded nonprofit organization, to play an active part in identifying, protecting and preserving sites, buildings, landscapes, stories and art forms unique to the Mississippi Delta, said Hildreth and other officials at the forum, hosted by officials from the Delta heritage area.

National Heritage Areas are places where natural, cultural, historic and scenic resources combine to form a unique, cohesive, nationally important landscape. The Delta heritage area is one of three in the state, along with the Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area in the northeast part of the state and the Mississippi Gulf Coast National Heritage Area.

National treasure sites “are historic places that tell the story of the country,” Hildreth said.

“Much of what is profoundly American — what people love about America — has come from the Delta, which is often called the ‘Cradle of American Culture,’” a National Park Service study reported in 1996.

Monday’s meeting, with two more today in Greenville and Clarksdale, are part of a two-year planning process to develop a management plan for the Delta heritage area, which comprises the 18 counties within the flood plain of the Yazoo and Mississippi rivers, including Warren County.

Its creation was initiated by Mississippi senators Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker, both Republicans, and Democratic Congressman Bennie Thompson, approved by Congress and authorized by President Barack Obama in 2009.

Management plan work began in November and is scheduled to be completed in December 2013, after additional public hearings are held.

About 40 people — from Vicksburg, Jackson, Greenville, Clinton, Ridgeland, Indianola, Cleveland and other Delta towns — attended Monday night’s meeting, breaking into two groups to create lists of key landmarks, eateries and historic sites, heritage attributes and important stories of the region.

“The management plan will reflect the vision of many residents and will guide the activities of the MSNHA for 10 to 15 years,” said study team member Joseph McGill of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Shirley Waring, the only member of the Delta heritage area board from Vicksburg, said being named a heritage area and national treasure carries important economic benefits.

“The designation means that we can be part of a huge preservation effort,” Waring said. “In terms of tourism, it’s very important because even internationally people want to know about the Mississippi Delta. We are unique, we’re authentic and preserving and promoting our culture translates into economic opportunity.”

Delta area study team member August Carlino of the Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area in Pittsburgh, Pa., said the heritage areas historically have generated about $5.50 in revenues for every $1 of federal funds allocated. They create jobs, generate local and state revenues and bring revitalization.

After the management plan is complete, it will be reviewed and tweaked, if necessary, by the National Park Service, which assists and advises the local boards and organizations who retain ultimate authority over the heritage areas. No zoning or regulatory land use decisions are involved, Carlino said.