{"nrhp_refnum":"03001093","name":"Lylburn Downing School","other_names":["Vdhr # 117-5002"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"300 Diamond St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lexington","county":"Rockbridge County","state":"VA","lat":37.78625333900004,"lon":-79.42350221899994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2003-10-23","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Agriculture","Black","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-story brick Classical Revival school building at 300 Diamond Street in Lexington, Virginia, built in 1926-27 for the town's Black students, with a rear wing added in 1939-40.","why_significant":"The school provided primary and secondary education for Lexington's Black community, and many graduates went on to distinguished careers. It is also considered a relatively unaltered example of 1920s Virginia public school design, with a central auditorium flanked by classrooms.","narrative":"Lylburn Downing School is a one-story brick building at 300 Diamond Street in Lexington, Virginia. Built in 1926-27, it has simple Classical Revival detailing, including a columned entry porch and brick pilasters. A two-story rear wing for home economics and industrial arts was added in 1939-40, and a covered walkway links it to a 1948-49 high school. Inside, classrooms were arranged around a central auditorium, and many original chalkboards, closets and transom windows survive. The school replaced a dilapidated frame school on Randolph Street, after Black residents organized in the 1920s to press the town for a new building. It opened in September 1927 with 182 students in grades one through nine, and later added upper high school grades. Graduates included a future chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court and other professionals and educators. The building is significant for its role in Black education in Lexington and as an intact 1920s Virginia school design.","period_of_significance":"1927-49","architect_builder":"Fleming R. Hurt (architect for 1940s remodeling); T.J. Collins & Son and Daley Craig (associate architects, 1940s remodeling)","architectural_style":"Classical Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Current function is listed as a community center; the form says the building retains good integrity, though the interior auditorium has been subdivided.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:02.617238-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/40/6834/41683440/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/03001093.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03001093/9db0feb311-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03001093/9db0feb311-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lylburn_Downing_School.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lylburn_Downing_School.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41683440","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lylburn_Downing_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q15243194"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/rockbridge-county/lylburn-downing-school-03001093/"}