{"nrhp_refnum":"08000590","name":"Byers, John F., House","other_names":["Byers DiPaola Castle"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"5551 S. Prospect","address_restricted":false,"city":"Ravenna","county":"Portage County","state":"OH","lat":41.142156973000056,"lon":-81.24484818863692,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2008-07-02","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Queen Anne style farmhouse built of cast concrete block, located just south of Ravenna in Portage County, Ohio. Construction began around 1905 for farmer John F. Byers, and the house is locally known as the 'Byers Castle.'","why_significant":"The nomination presents the house as an unusual masonry example of Queen Anne design in an area where most such houses are wood-framed. It is the Free Classic subtype with patterned masonry features. The walls were made from block cast on site with custom-built equipment, and the design is credited to Akron architect Charles Henry. The house also survives with its original interior woodwork and finishes largely intact.","narrative":"Just south of Ravenna, Ohio, a large Queen Anne house of cast concrete block sits on about 20 acres that remain from John F. Byers' original 125-acre farm. Local residents call it the 'Byers Castle.' Byers began building it in 1905 and died that September, after the walls were complete; his family finished the house with help from Akron architect Charles Henry. The block was formed on site with equipment made for the project, and specially cast basement blocks create vents that draw air through the cellar. The house has a corner tower with a conical roof, a wraparound porch, a Palladian window with leaded glass, and about 3,800 square feet on two floors. Inside, cherry and fumed quarter-sawn white oak trim give rooms distinct characters, and the second-floor bath keeps its original tile. Unlike most of Ravenna's wood-framed Queen Anne homes, this rural masonry example has survived with few changes to its original design. It is still used as a single-family home.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Charles Henry (Akron architect, Charles Henry and Son), who assisted in the design per a 1976 family interview","architectural_style":"Late Victorian - Queen Anne (Free Classic subtype with patterned masonry)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Used as a single-family residence; the exterior is largely original apart from roofing and trim repairs, and the interior is in near as-built condition.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:07.204207-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/08000590.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71990965","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q138653886"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/portage-county/byers-john-f-house-08000590/"}