{"nrhp_refnum":"73002044","name":"Foster's Castle","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"NE of Tunstall off VA 608","address_restricted":false,"city":"Tunstall","county":"New Kent County","state":"VA","lat":37.58908951250007,"lon":-77.07790327984642,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-04-11","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A T-shaped brick house near Tunstall in northwest New Kent County, Virginia, believed to have been built about 1685 by Colonel Joseph Foster. It stands among cultivated fields near the Pamunkey River.","why_significant":"It is one of only four surviving Tudor-Stuart style Virginia structures with a two-story central porch projection, a major seventeenth and early-eighteenth century building form. Despite considerable alteration, most of the original fabric survives and the original appearance is still evident. Its distinctive brickwork and string courses are notable features.","narrative":"Foster's Castle is a T-shaped brick house in the quiet northwest corner of New Kent County, Virginia, set among fields bounded by the Pamunkey River, marshland and uneven ground. It is believed to have been built between 1685 and 1690 by Colonel Joseph Foster, an English-born burgess, sheriff, justice and militia officer who also supervised construction of Saint Peters Church. The house was raised to a full two stories with a lower roof in 1873 after Dr. J.C. Gregory bought it, and its windows were changed, yet much of the original brickwork remains visible. Distinctive details include a two-course string course that rises above the doorway, a gabled two-story entrance projection, and an unusual mix of brick bonds. It is one of four surviving Virginia buildings of the Tudor-Stuart type with a central porch projection, alongside Criss Cross, the Mathew Jones House and Bacon's Castle, making it a rare survivor of a once-common form.","period_of_significance":"17th Century (c. 1685)","architect_builder":"Colonel Joseph Foster (believed builder)","architectural_style":"Tudor-Stuart style with porch projection","criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition stated as good and altered; occupied as a private residence by the owner's family.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:57.882885-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/42/6820/41682042/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/73002044.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73002044/1b3260b6fe-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73002044/1b3260b6fe-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Unknown authorUnknown author","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fosters_Castle_HABS.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Unknown authorUnknown author</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fosters_Castle_HABS.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41682042","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foster%27s_Castle","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14712331"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/new-kent-county/fosters-castle-73002044/"}