{"nrhp_refnum":"72000995","name":"Long, Alexander, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"N of Spencer on Sowers Ferry Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Spencer","county":"Rowan County","state":"NC","lat":35.702915130000065,"lon":-80.42006661599999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1972-02-01","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A large two-story frame dwelling with a gable roof and stone foundation on Sowers Ferry Road (SR 1918) near Spencer, Rowan County, North Carolina, thought to have been built about 1786 by Alexander Long.","why_significant":"The house is notable for its massive double-shoulder Flemish bond chimney arrangement joined by a brick pent, with hearts and the initials \"AL\" and \"EL\" in glazed headers. Thomas Waterman described these as \"rare in North Carolina\", and the nomination calls them among the finest examples of patterned brickwork in the South. It is also tied to Alexander Long's ferry on the Yadkin River.","narrative":"Alexander Long House is a large two-story frame dwelling on a hilltop above the Yadkin River near Spencer, Rowan County. Alexander Long is thought to have built it about 1786 for his second wife, Elizabeth, on land his father acquired in 1759. Long also kept a public ferry on the river near the mouth of Grant's Creek by 1784. The house's most striking feature is the south gable end, where two large Flemish bond brick chimneys are connected by a high brick pent. Glazed headers form hearts on the chimneys, with the initials \"AL\" and \"EL\" below. Thomas Waterman called this treatment rare in North Carolina, and the nomination ranks it among the finest patterned brickwork in the South. Inside, the original four-room plan survives, with raised-paneled wainscots and carved mantels. Later changes include lapped siding, a modern porch and a kitchen wing. The property passed through the Long, Braun, Chambers and Sowers families before its 1969 sale.","period_of_significance":"18th Century","architect_builder":"Alexander Long (thought to have built the house)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as a private residence in fair condition, on its original site; the form notes later alterations such as replacement siding, a modern porch and a kitchen wing.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:55.98792-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/56/7220/47722056/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/72000995.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47722056","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Long_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q19986841"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/rowan-county/long-alexander-house-72000995/"}