{"nrhp_refnum":"69000261","name":"Smithfield","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"W of Blacksburg","address_restricted":false,"city":"Blacksburg","county":"Montgomery County","state":"VA","lat":37.22392000000008,"lon":-80.43222999999995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1969-11-12","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Smithfield is a colonial plantation house about one mile west of Blacksburg in Montgomery County, Virginia, built in 1773-74 by William Preston on land that was part of a royal grant of the 1740s.","why_significant":"It is described as one of the earliest and more important colonial plantation houses west of the Blue Ridge. It was the homestead of several prominent Virginians, including the Prestons and Floyds, who served as governors. It is also an extremely rare example of the mid-eighteenth century farmhouse form carried beyond the Blue Ridge.","narrative":"Smithfield is a one-and-one-half story, L-shaped frame plantation house west of Blacksburg, Virginia. Although it lies west of the Blue Ridge, its form and style are typical of the Tidewater region. Colonel William Preston built it in 1773-74 on land that had been patented by his uncle, Colonel John Patton, and renamed it for his wife, Susanna Smith. Notable features include dormers, a five-bay main facade, Flemish bond brickwork with glazed headers, and a Chinese trellis balustrade on the main staircase. The outbuildings that once surrounded it no longer survive. Preston was a surveyor, burgess and Revolutionary War officer. His son James Patton Preston, and relatives John Floyd and John Buchanan Floyd, all became governors of Virginia, and the last two had ties to the house. The house is valued as a rare mid-eighteenth century farmhouse type found beyond the Blue Ridge, and it has been renovated for exhibition.","period_of_significance":"18th Century","architect_builder":"William Preston (erected the house, 1773-74)","architectural_style":"Tidewater-style one-and-one-half story frame plantation house","criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in good condition, largely unaltered, and recently renovated for exhibition; the form lists museum use and owner as the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:57.753505-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/91/6819/41681991/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/69000261.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/69000261/00da3eadc1-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/69000261/00da3eadc1-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"preservation virginia employee","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Smithfield_plantation.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">preservation virginia employee</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Smithfield_plantation.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41681991","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smithfield_(Blacksburg,_Virginia)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7545498"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/montgomery-county/smithfield-69000261/"}