{"nrhp_refnum":"00001442","name":"Mount Walla","other_names":["VDHR file no. 298-0009"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"604 Poplar Springs Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Scottsville","county":"Albemarle County","state":"VA","lat":37.800255058500056,"lon":-78.49195622025836,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2000-11-22","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Mount Walla is a story-and-a-half frame house on a 13.4-acre hilltop parcel at 604 Poplar Springs Road, Scottsville, Albemarle County, Virginia, overlooking the town and the James River. The core most likely dates to ca. 1820-ca. 1840, with a smokehouse, a family cemetery and a 1970 guest house on the grounds.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is significant under Criterion C for the richness and sophistication of its Federal styling, including a three-part mantel and detailed door and window surrounds. It is also significant under Criterion B in the area of transportation for its link to Peter Field Jefferson, who owned the town ferry and canal boats and profited from the James River and Kanawha Canal. Significance is local.","narrative":"Mount Walla is a story-and-a-half frame house on a hill above Scottsville and the James River in Albemarle County, Virginia. Its 42-by-18-foot hall-parlor core most likely dates to about 1820-1840, though the nomination allows for an earlier date. Beaded weatherboards, double-shouldered brick chimneys and classical porches on the north and south fronts mark the exterior. Inside, a three-part Federal mantel with carved sunbursts, molded door and window surrounds and an enclosed winder stair survive. Additions made from the 1950s through the 1990s more than doubled the house, and a guest house was built in 1970. An antebellum smokehouse and a family cemetery with a Victorian iron fence also remain. The property is tied to Peter Field Jefferson, a grandnephew of President Thomas Jefferson, who bought it in 1836. He profited from canal scrip, owned the Scottsville ferry and canal boats, and ran tobacco and milling interests. The house is recognized for its Federal detailing and for that transportation connection.","period_of_significance":"Ca. 1820-1861","architect_builder":"unknown","architectural_style":"Federal; Greek Revival","criteria":["B","C"],"status_note":"Listed current functions are single dwelling, secondary structure and cemetery; the house has been enlarged several times since the 1950s.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:00.855687-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/87/6793/41679387/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/00001442.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/00001442/fb376eca37-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/00001442/fb376eca37-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mount_Walla_entrance.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mount_Walla_entrance.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"04000034","name":"Scottsville Historic District (Boundary Increase)","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/virginia/scottsville-historic-district-boundary-increase-04000034/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41679387","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Walla","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14712915"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/albemarle-county/mount-walla-00001442/"}