{"nrhp_refnum":"02001370","name":"Sanders, Walter McDonald, House","other_names":["143-5022"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"College Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Bluefield","county":"Tazewell County","state":"VA","lat":37.23881255100008,"lon":-81.25968770699996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-11-21","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A large red brick, two-story Queen Anne style farmhouse on College Avenue in Bluefield, Tazewell County, Virginia, built 1894-1896 with surviving outbuildings on a 2-acre parcel.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house embodies the distinctive characteristics of a late-Victorian Queen Anne mansion, with finely executed interior detailing. It also cites the high integrity of the house and its surviving outbuildings, and its prominence as a regional landmark.","narrative":"Built between 1894 and 1896 for farmer Walter McDonald Sanders, this red brick Queen Anne house sits on College Avenue in Bluefield, Virginia, on the old Cumberland-Fincastle Turnpike route. It replaced an earlier log house and once stood at the center of a 3,000-acre farm. Only a 2-acre parcel remains, now surrounded by commercial development and a four-lane bypass. The house has a complex slate roof, a turret, iron cresting, and a decorative front porch with folk-art carvings. Inside, a central hall, unpainted white oak woodwork, and varied mantels with pressed tin facings show careful craftsmanship. A 1911 rear addition matched the original design. A limestone springhouse, a smokehouse, a granary, and a small frame dwelling built for a family nurse also survive. Its architectural quality and the integrity of the house and outbuildings supported its listing for architecture. The Graham Historical Society is restoring it as a museum and community center.","period_of_significance":"1894-1952","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Late Victorian -- Queen Anne","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"The house is being restored by the Graham Historical Society for use as a museum and community center; the springhouse and smokehouse are currently vacant.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:01.1737-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/44/6839/41683944/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/02001370.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02001370/c5761fca56-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02001370/c5761fca56-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Walter_McDonald_Sanders_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Walter_McDonald_Sanders_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41683944","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_McDonald_Sanders_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16899766"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/tazewell-county/sanders-walter-mcdonald-house-02001370/"}