{"nrhp_refnum":"07000232","name":"Roanoke Downtown Historic District (Boundary Increase)","other_names":["128-5761-144 through 147"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"310-324 Salem Ave. SW","address_restricted":false,"city":"Roanoke (Independent City)","county":"Roanoke (city and county)","state":"VA","lat":37.272020950500035,"lon":-79.94705796075996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2007-03-29","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Commerce"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A half-acre boundary increase to the Roanoke Downtown Historic District, covering four commercial and light industrial buildings at 310-324 Salem Avenue SW in Roanoke, Virginia, built between about 1906 and 1938.","why_significant":"The buildings are typical of small-scale commercial and industrial buildings in early 20th-century downtown Roanoke. Their uses (electric motor shop, sheet metal shop, candy factory, upholstery repair shop) relate to downtown commerce and to the shipping and industrial activity of the railroad. They fall within the existing district's period of significance and are tied to it by location and character.","narrative":"Four buildings on the south side of the 300 block of Salem Avenue SW, in Roanoke, Virginia, were added to the Roanoke Downtown Historic District in a half-acre boundary increase. Built between about 1906 and 1938 of brick or brick-veneered masonry block, they include a one-story former electric motor repair shop, a two-story sheet metal building with a large arched opening, a one-story upholstery repair shop, and the three-story Peerless Candy Company, a wholesale candy factory active from about 1916 into the early 1950s. Two are counted as contributing; the two others carry modern glass facades that may be removable. The block changed from frame dwellings into brick stores, factories, and warehouses linked to downtown commerce and the nearby railroad. The group was added because it matches the commercial character of the downtown district and falls within its period of significance, for its role in the city's commercial and industrial development and its architecture.","period_of_significance":"1906-1952","architect_builder":"Unknown","architectural_style":"Commercial, Other","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Current functions listed are specialty store, work in progress, and vacant/not in use. The Peerless Candy building was undergoing renovation, with its cornice being reconstructed from historic photographs.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:03.265396-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/91/6832/41683291/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/07000232.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/07000232/e7eb5082d3-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/07000232/e7eb5082d3-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Patriarca12","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roanoke_Downtown_Historic_District.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Patriarca12</a>, <a href=\"https://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:Roanoke_Downtown_Historic_District.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"02000978","name":"Roanoke Downtown Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/virginia/roanoke-downtown-historic-district-02000978/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41683291","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roanoke_Downtown_Historic_District_(Roanoke,_Virginia)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7339782"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/roanoke/roanoke-downtown-historic-district-boundary-increase-07000232/"}