{"nrhp_refnum":"73000452","name":"Downing, T. B., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"706 Cowper St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Palo Alto","county":"Santa Clara County","state":"CA","lat":37.44638162600006,"lon":-122.15658955599997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-10-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story Queen Anne style house at 706 Cowper Street in Palo Alto, Santa Clara County, California, built in 1894 for T. B. Downing.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it the most outstanding extant example of the Queen Anne style in Palo Alto. It was one of the largest and most ornate homes in the early town. Its builder, T. B. Downing, served on the first city council and the school board.","narrative":"Built in 1894 at 706 Cowper Street in Palo Alto, this three-story house was the home of T. B. Downing, a member of the city's first council and an early school board member. It was one of the largest and most ornate houses in a town that had been a grain field only a few years earlier, after the founding of Stanford University prompted Palo Alto's growth. The house is described as the most outstanding surviving example of the Queen Anne style in the city. Its decoration includes a round corner tower with finial, brackets, dentil and window molding, varied shingles, repeated gables, decorated bargeboards, and a porch with gingerbread columns, balustrade and spindles. A slanted side bay frames a round window. The exterior was unaltered until a June 1972 fire damaged the third floor and roof. The interior was long ago divided into five apartments, though the original woodwork and fixtures remain.","period_of_significance":"19th Century (specific date 1894)","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Queen Anne","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as in fair condition. A June 1972 fire on the third floor caused smoke damage and partly destroyed the roof. The interior was divided into five apartments, and the form lists the use as a private residence.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.529582-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/73000452.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73000452/b74927047d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73000452/b74927047d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Sanfranman59","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:T._B._Downing_House,_706_Cowper_St.,_Palo_Alto,_CA_5-27-2012_1-52-56_PM.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Sanfranman59</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:T._B._Downing_House,_706_Cowper_St.,_Palo_Alto,_CA_5-27-2012_1-52-56_PM.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123861667","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T._B._Downing_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q18149493"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/santa-clara-county/downing-t-b-house-73000452/"}