Lexington has received national and state recognition of its historic resources:  four properties or areas, the Battle Green, Buckman Tavern, the Hancock-Clarke House, and the Minuteman National Historical Park, have been designated as National Historic Landmarks by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior.  Thirteen additional properties are individually listed on the National and State Registers of Historic Places, in addition to the Town’s listed National Register Historic Districts (The Lexington Green Historic District, the Buckman Tavern Historic District, and the Sanderson House–Munroe Tavern Historic District) and their contributing properties.  The Metropolitan State Hospital Multiple Property National Register listing, shared with the towns of Belmont and Waltham, also contains a number of significant buildings.  In addition, approximately 600 properties are protected through inclusion within one or another of the Town-established local historic districts (Battle Green, East Village, Hancock-Clarke, Munroe Tavern).

The Lexington Historical Commission was created “for the preservation, protection and development of the historical or archeological resources” of the Town.  Since the 1970s the LHC has documented over 1,400 historic resources located throughout Lexington.  To ensure that these historically and architecturally significant structures are preserved, the LHC administers the Town’s Demolition Delay Bylaw. The LHC also endeavors to educate citizens of the breadth and importance of Lexington’s cultural heritage.