{"nrhp_refnum":"11000707","name":"Comstock, Nathan, Jr., House","other_names":["Odd Fellows Orphanage"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"299 Old Niagara Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lockport","county":"Niagara County","state":"NY","lat":43.19075467700003,"lon":-78.67914127799997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2011-09-29","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story, four-bay stone house at 299 Old Niagara Road in Lockport, Niagara County, New York, built around 1823 for Nathan Comstock, Jr. It has a later wood-frame wing and a ca. 1907 brick dormitory addition.","why_significant":"It is argued to be significant under Criterion C as an intact example of early stone construction in Western New York, built of local Gasport limestone in a vernacular Greek Revival style. It is also significant under Criterion A for settlement, as the home of one of Lockport's founders, who helped lay out the village and enabled the growth of Lowertown. It is the oldest property in the Stone Buildings of Lockport multiple property listing.","narrative":"Built around 1823 at 299 Old Niagara Road in Lockport, this two-story stone house was the home of Nathan Comstock, Jr., one of the village's early settlers. Its walls are rock-faced Gasport limestone, probably salvaged from Erie Canal construction, and it follows a plain, symmetrical vernacular Greek Revival plan with stone sills, lintels and full-height corner quoins. A wide center hall divides the parlor and sitting room downstairs from four bedrooms above. Comstock helped found Lockport by joining other investors in laying out the canal-side village, and he later conveyed 300 acres that became the industrial area of Lowertown. A wood-frame kitchen wing was added around 1890. In 1907 the house became an Odd Fellows orphanage, and a brick dormitory was built behind it. The dormitory is counted as non-contributing. The house is now vacant and its interior has suffered from neglect and vandalism, but it remains the oldest building in the city's stone buildings group.","period_of_significance":"Ca. 1823-1907","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Vernacular Greek Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Currently vacant; the interior lost much historic fabric to neglect and vandalism, though the original layout and staircase survive.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:48.357496-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/11000707.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/11000707/b7a559ee6d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/11000707/b7a559ee6d-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Pubdog","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nathan_Comstock_Jr._House_Dec_11.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Pubdog</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nathan_Comstock_Jr._House_Dec_11.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75313985","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathan_Comstock_Jr._House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6968981"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/niagara-county/comstock-nathan-jr-house-11000707/"}