{"nrhp_refnum":"76000726","name":"Golconda Historic District","other_names":[],"category":"district","location":{"address":"IL 146","address_restricted":false,"city":"Golconda","county":"Pope County","state":"IL","lat":37.373657572500036,"lon":-88.48443630992074,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-10-22","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Transportation","Exploration/Settlement","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A historic district covering most of the town of Golconda, the Pope County seat in southeastern Illinois on the Ohio River, plus a large open area to the north. It spans about 437 acres and includes buildings mainly from the 1850s to the early 1900s.","why_significant":"The nomination argues that Golconda is an early Ohio River town in Illinois that grew slowly after the Civil War, so its nineteenth-century commercial buildings, courthouse and homes survive largely intact. The main street's river-trade-era storefronts, the 1872 courthouse and the many Victorian houses from the town's 1880s peak are described as an unusually well-preserved ensemble. It was judged to be of local significance.","narrative":"Golconda is a small Ohio River town and the seat of Pope County in southeastern Illinois. This district takes in most of the town north of Pope Street, along with a large stretch of open land to the north, about 437 acres in all. Settlement began in 1798 under Major James Lusk, who ran a ferry and tavern, and the town was later laid out and named Golconda by Green B. Field. Main Street keeps two-story brick commercial buildings with decorative brick trim from the era of river trade. A brick and stone courthouse built in 1872 sits in a tree-shaded square. Surrounding streets hold sturdy frame and brick houses, many built by German craftsmen from the 1860s onward, with the most elaborate Victorian homes dating from the 1880s, when the town reached its peak prosperity. The nomination values the way this nineteenth-century fabric survives, despite flood walls, fires and demolitions after the 1937 flood.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Victorian-era houses and two-story brick commercial buildings with decorative brickwork; no formal style classification given","criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition marked good; the town remains an occupied community with homes, shops and a courthouse in use, and the form reports no obvious intrusions.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:34.531533-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/17/8939/28893917/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/76000726.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76000726/437d491109-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76000726/437d491109-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Main_from_Adams_in_Golconda.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Main_from_Adams_in_Golconda.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28893917","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golconda_Historic_District","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5578483"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/pope-county/golconda-historic-district-76000726/"}