{"nrhp_refnum":"02000880","name":"Hays, John R., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"45 Maple St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Walden","county":"Orange County","state":"NY","lat":41.55913558700007,"lon":-74.18823089599994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-08-22","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story, mansard-roofed frame side-hall house at 45 Maple Street in the village of Walden, Orange County, New York, built in 1874, with a small contributing barn behind it.","why_significant":"The house is an outstanding local example of Second Empire design and represents the merchant-class housing of Walden's industrial growth tied to the New York Knife Works. It is also associated with John R. Hays, a Civil War veteran and leading village citizen who held many civic posts.","narrative":"Built in 1874 at 45 Maple Street in the center of Walden, this two-story frame house is a small but finely detailed example of the Second Empire style. It has a high mansard roof with round-arched dormers, a bracketed cornice, clapboard siding, a rubblestone foundation and a wraparound porch with scroll-sawn details. Inside, the original flooring, plaster walls, mantels, doors and casings survive. A small barn behind the house appears to date from the same time. The house reflects the merchant-class housing built as Walden grew around the New York Knife Works and other mills along the Wallkill River. It is also tied to John R. Hays, born in Walden in 1840, who served as a lieutenant in the 124th New York Regiment during the Civil War. Back home, Hays worked as a railroad agent, led the local G.A.R. post, helped fund the Soldiers' Monument, served as fire chief and postmaster, and was a bank officer. He died in the house in 1912.","period_of_significance":"1874-1912","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Late Victorian/Second Empire","criteria":["B","C"],"status_note":"Currently in use as a single dwelling; the original slate roof was replaced with asphalt shingles, and the form says the house retains a high degree of integrity.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:53.604023-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/02000880.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000880/522f40bd7c-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000880/522f40bd7c-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Daniel Case","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_R_Hayes_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Daniel Case</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_R_Hayes_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75320668","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_R._Hays_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14706679"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/orange-county/hays-john-r-house-02000880/"}