{"nrhp_refnum":"73002057","name":"Baxter House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"N of Harrisonburg on VA 42","address_restricted":false,"city":"Edom","county":"Rockingham County","state":"VA","lat":38.555578282000056,"lon":-78.83581999199998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-10-03","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A double-pen, two-story log dwelling set just west of Route 42 north of Edom in Rockingham County, Virginia, in the Linville Creek area. The east section was probably built in the late eighteenth century by George Baxter, with the west section added a few years later.","why_significant":"The house is argued to show some of the finest log construction in Virginia. Its west section has full dovetail corner notching with logs fitted so closely that no chinking is needed. The east section is more typical of Scotch-Irish Valley log houses, and its curved-tapered limestone chimney is an outstanding example of early Valley masonry. The Baxter family also became prominent in the Valley.","narrative":"Set in the rolling hills of the Linville Creek area just west of Route 42, north of Edom, this two-story double-pen dwelling is an eighteenth-century Valley log house. Two abutting two-bay log sections rest on a limestone foundation, with a frame shed addition on the north side and a porch across part of the south front. Mid-nineteenth century board-and-batten siding was removed shortly before the nomination, exposing the log walls. The eastern section uses roughly squared hewn logs with half dovetail notching and chinking. The western section, added a few years later, uses carefully finished logs with full dovetail notching, fitted so tightly that no chinking is needed. Tradition credits nearby German craftsmen with that work. A curved-tapered limestone chimney is noted as an outstanding example of early Valley masonry. George Baxter, a Scottish immigrant, probably built the original portion; in 1789 he owned as much as 1196 acres here. His son George A. Baxter served as president of Washington College from 1799 to 1829.","period_of_significance":"18th and 19th centuries","architect_builder":"George Baxter (probable builder of the original portion)","architectural_style":"Eighteenth-century Valley log house, single-pile double-pen","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as a private residence in fair condition and occupied; the later board-and-batten siding had recently been removed to expose the log construction.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:57.441381-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/69/6834/41683469/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/73002057.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73002057/d8c5b8bedb-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73002057/d8c5b8bedb-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Kevin M. Byrne","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baxter_House,_Rockingham_Co_VA_01_2014-09-13.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Kevin M. Byrne</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:Baxter_House,_Rockingham_Co_VA_01_2014-09-13.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41683469","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baxter_House_(Edom,_Virginia)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q15197656"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/rockingham-county/baxter-house-73002057/"}