KNOXVILLE (WVLT) – On Thursday, Knox Heritage released its annual “Fragile 15,” list of the most endangered historical structures and places in Knox County.

The list comes out every many during National Preservation Month, and is meant to bring attention to landmarks from the past.

Many of the locations on the list are well known, and you have probably seen some of them around town, while others are secluded in the county’s various nooks.

Topping number one on the 2008 list is the area’s “scenic vistas and ridge tops.” At the announcement, Knox Heritage advised the county to prevent further development along the ridges, many of which have been sold off for various commercial and high residential projects in recent years.

It was the first year that an area instead of a structure has topped the list. In 2007, the McClung Warehouses held the top spot, just months after they had been gutted by a large fire. This year they fell to fifth.

Author Cormac McCarthy’s boyhood home also made the list for the first time this year. According to Knox Heritage, it stands surrounded by a dense forest of bamboo at 5501 Martin Mill Pike in South Knoxville. McCarthy’s parents purchased the home in 1941, though according to property records, it was sold to its current owner, Peter Langdon Haskell in 1974.

"Things on the endangered list often take a while to resolve because they're the toughest cases,” said Kim Trent of Knox Heritage. “You really have to come up with something innovated to get a lot of them restored and off the list."

The 2008 “Fragile 15” list is as follows:

1. Scenic Vistas and Ridgetops

2. 5501 Martin Mill Pike: Childhood Home of Cormac McCarthy

3. Vacant Historic Knox County School Buildings:
- South High at 801 Tipton Avenue
- Brownlow Elementary School at 1305 Luttrell Street
- Oakwood Elementary School at 232 E. Churchwell Avenue

4. Maplehurst Neighborhood: Behind Church Street United Methodist Church on the corner of Cumberland Avenue and Henley Street.

5. The McClung Warehouses: 501- 525 W. Jackson Avenue

6. Historic Resources at the University of Tennessee:
- UT Conference Center (formerly Rich's) at 600 Henley Street
- The Eugenia Williams House at 4848 Lyons View Pike
- Hoskins Library at 1401 Cumberland Avenue
- Cherokee Farm

7. French Broad River Corridor: East Knox County

8. Cal Johnson Building: 301 State Street

9. The Pickle Mansion: 1633 Clinch Avenue

10: Williams-Richards House: 2225 Riverside Drive

11. Knoxville College: 901 College Street

12. Mid-Century Modern Residential and Commercial Buildings:
-Former Bearden Bank Branch Building on Kingston Pike
-Lustron Houses

13. Former Park City Presbyterian Church: 2204 Linden Avenue

14. J.C. Penney Building: 412 S. Gay Street

15. Edelmar: 3624 Topside Road

You can read more about each building and the “Fragile 15” lists from years past by clicking on the link below.