{"nrhp_refnum":"100006254","name":"Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Shop","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"105-107 S. Fairfax","address_restricted":false,"city":"Alexandria (Independent City)","county":"Alexandria","state":"VA","lat":null,"lon":null,"geom_source":null},"listed_date":null,"is_nhl":true,"nhl_designated_date":"2021-01-13","areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Health/Medicine","Architecture"],"significance_levels":[],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A pair of adjoining 3½-story brick buildings at 105-107 S. Fairfax Street in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. The south building (107) dates to about 1775 and housed the apothecary shop; the north building (105) dates to about 1815 and served as its warehouse.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it among the oldest preserved apothecaries in the United States and the only one in Virginia to operate continuously from the 18th to the 20th centuries. Its interior keeps original storage boxes, tins and handblown bottles, along with Gothic-style shelves and counters added in 1835. It is also tied to patrons such as George Washington and to J.E.B. Stuart delivering orders to Robert E. Lee before Harper's Ferry.","narrative":"Two adjoining brick buildings at 105-107 S. Fairfax Street in Old Town Alexandria make up the Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Shop. The south building, 107, was built about 1775 by Philip Dawe, a silver- and coppersmith, and Edward Stabler was advertising an apothecary business there by 1796. The north building, 105, dates to about 1815 and was bought by Stabler in 1829 to serve as a warehouse. The business operated under the Stabler name until 1852, when his son-in-law John Leadbeater took over. The first-floor room of 107 has Gothic-style shelves and counters installed in 1835, and the upper floors keep hand-lettered wooden boxes, tins and handblown bottles. Customers reportedly included George Washington, Henry Clay and Daniel Webster. After the shop was sold at auction in 1933, the Landmarks Society of Alexandria bought the buildings. Thomas T. Waterman restored them in 1936-38, and the shop opened as a museum in 1939. It is described as the only Virginia apothecary to operate continuously from the 18th to the 20th centuries.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Built ca. 1775 by Philip Dawe (107); restored 1936-38 by Thomas T. Waterman; the form lists builder/architect as N/A","architectural_style":"Gothic Revival interior (1835) in 107","criteria":[],"status_note":"107 is open as a museum and 105 houses a consignment shop operated by the Landmarks Society; the form describes the property as occupied and largely unaltered.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:58.035114-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/48/6794/41679448/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/82001796.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":null,"wikipedia":null,"wikidata":null},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/alexandria/stabler-leadbeater-apothecary-shop-100006254/"}