{"nrhp_refnum":"74001255","name":"Westerly","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Chandler Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Piffard","county":"Livingston County","state":"NY","lat":42.82197432800007,"lon":-77.85360830293293,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1974-12-19","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Agriculture","Transportation","Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A brick country house built in 1850 with related outbuildings, gardens, fields and a farm pond, on Chandler Road in Piffard, Livingston County, New York, in the Genesee River Valley. It was built by a local builder named McBride for Major William H. Spencer.","why_significant":"The house blends Greek Revival and Italianate elements and is described as one of the most architecturally significant country houses in the Genesee Valley. It was built at the height of Genesee Valley Canal traffic for one of the canal's early sponsors, and it is tied historically and visually to the old canal bed. Only two families have owned it, which kept its architectural and environmental integrity.","narrative":"Set among rich farmland in the Genesee River Valley near Piffard, \"Westerly\" is an estate centered on a two-story brick house built in 1850 and originally called Tuscarora. A local builder named McBride constructed it for Major William H. Spencer, an early settler and War of 1812 veteran who backed the Genesee Valley Canal. The house has a hipped roof, widow's walk, paired brackets and a Greek Revival doorway with sidelights, mixing Greek Revival and Italianate features. The estate also includes board-and-batten twin barns, a 1930s playhouse, a tenant cottage, gardens and a pond. Spencer's son William married Julia Tyler, daughter of President John Tyler, and the couple's story is part of the house's history. Charles F. Wadsworth bought the property in the 1870s, and his descendants have held it since. Little has changed in a century, and the house still faces the old canal bed across open fields and lawns.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"McBride (locally known builder)","architectural_style":"Greek Revival with Italianate elements","criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in excellent condition, occupied as a private residence with agricultural use; virtually no architectural changes in the past century.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:39.696988-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/74001255.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74001255/49f33a9e21-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74001255/49f33a9e21-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Jerrye &amp; Roy Klotz, MD","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WESTERLY,_PIFFARD,_LIVINGSTON_COUNTY.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jerrye &amp;amp; Roy Klotz, MD</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WESTERLY,_PIFFARD,_LIVINGSTON_COUNTY.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75318698","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westerly_(Piffard,_New_York)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14707765"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/livingston-county/westerly-74001255/"}