Today, Newport is renowned as one of the most historically significant and architecturally intact cities in America. In the years following World War II, this heritage was under siege; the city s rich collection of colonial buildings and Gilded Age mansions was threatened by demolition and redevelopment. Katherine Warren, California-born and New Orleans bred, intervened by galvanizing her adopted community around the protection of its architectural heritage and, in doing so, contributed greatly to the city s revitalization. Warren s passion for preservation was complemented by an equally fervent interest in modernist art; her collection of works by such artists as Picasso and Mondrian rivaled that of the nation s leading patrons of twentieth-century art. Warren s story stretches far beyond her pivotal role in founding and leading The Preservation Society of Newport County; her pursuit of community engagement, creative adaptive uses for historic structures, and economic development through preservation proved avant-garde, earning Newport national recognition and revealing Warren as a thought leader in preservation nationwide."