{"nrhp_refnum":"74001369","name":"Waverly Plantation","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"S of U.S. 58","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cunningham","county":"Person County","state":"NC","lat":36.535137383000034,"lon":-79.08126927680587,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1974-10-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A late Federal style frame plantation house near Cunningham in Person County, North Carolina, built between 1825 and 1835 for Alexander Cuningham, with surviving outbuildings, a chapel and a family graveyard.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is architecturally significant as an elaborate, sophisticated vernacular version of the Adamesque style in early nineteenth century North Carolina, showing more Virginia than Piedmont influence. Its delicate classical finish, repeating an oak leaf and acorn motif, is called highly individualized and possibly unique. It is also of local historical significance as the seat of the prominent Cuningham family.","narrative":"Waverly Plantation is a frame plantation house south of U.S. 58 near Cunningham in Person County. Built between 1825 and 1835 for Alexander Cuningham, it has two sections, a two-story main block and a one-and-one-half-story west wing, both trimmed with delicate wooden ornament. Zig-zag and pierced cornices, a pedimented porch and an elaborate front doorway carry an oak leaf and acorn motif that also appears inside, in the paneled hall, its arch and the door surrounds. The nomination describes this work as a sophisticated vernacular form of the Adamesque style, showing more Virginia influence than Piedmont North Carolina influence. Surviving outbuildings include a former slave quarter, a small frame chapel said to be Cuningham's first house, and a family graveyard with an iron fence. The formal gardens and many outbuildings have disappeared. The property was listed for its architecture and as the seat of the Cuningham family, which included state legislators and university trustees.","period_of_significance":"19th Century","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Late Federal / Adamesque (vernacular)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as in good condition and altered; the form checks private residence as present use and unoccupied status. Formal gardens and many outbuildings are gone, and the stone-paved drive is rubble.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:57.938154-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/73/7217/47721773/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/74001369.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74001369/2260657bde-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74001369/2260657bde-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Waverly_Plantation_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Waverly_Plantation_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47721773","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waverly_Plantation_(Cunningham,_North_Carolina)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q21188025"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/person-county/waverly-plantation-74001369/"}