{"nrhp_refnum":"02000064","name":"Knickerbocker Historic District","other_names":[],"category":"district","location":{"address":"4th, 5th and 6th Aves., Burgoon Rd., 40th and 41sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Altoona","county":"Blair County","state":"PA","lat":40.487937572500044,"lon":-78.4134341230274,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-02-20","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A rowhouse district of about 153 contributing units in the southeastern section of Altoona, Blair County, Pennsylvania, centred on the former Knickerbocker Hotel at Burgoon Road and 6th Avenue. Its rows were built between 1904 and about 1930.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the district is significant under Criterion C for architecture, as a planned rowhouse complex combining Italianate and Neo-Classical Revival influences. It is described as the largest and most stylized rowhouse complex in Altoona and the only area where entire city blocks hold planned rowhouse units. Its development was tied to the nearby Pennsylvania Railroad South Altoona shops and foundry.","narrative":"Rowhouses built between 1904 and about 1930 form the Knickerbocker Historic District in southeastern Altoona, Blair County. Two-story brick units with paired entrances, pressed metal cornices, semi-octagonal bay windows and stained glass transoms line Burgoon Road and 4th, 5th and 6th Avenues. The Knickerbocker Hotel, completed around 1906, anchors the group at the junction of Burgoon Road and 6th Avenue, where a curved commercial block carries the name and the date 1904 on its parapet. The Knickerbocker Contracting Company, of Philadelphia, built the rows, which were planned for rental housing near the Pennsylvania Railroad South Altoona shops. Most early residents worked for the railroad. The district is regarded as Altoona's largest and most stylized rowhouse complex, and it is the only place in the city where whole blocks consist of planned rowhouses. Its design reflects the transition from Italianate to Neo-Classical Revival styling in working-class housing of the period.","period_of_significance":"1904-ca. 1930","architect_builder":"Knickerbocker Contracting Company","architectural_style":"Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals; Colonial Revival and Neoclassical detailing","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Deterioration followed the decline of the railroad; a neighborhood improvement effort was begun in 1997 and the district is said to retain integrity.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:36.153355-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/02000064.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000064/d8a23f9f9d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000064/d8a23f9f9d-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"David Ames","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Knickerbocker_Rowhouse.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">David Ames</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Knickerbocker_Rowhouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71994505","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knickerbocker_Historic_District","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6422053"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/blair-county/knickerbocker-historic-district-02000064/"}