{"nrhp_refnum":"78001940","name":"Powell House","other_names":["Trading Post"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Main and Orange Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Fair Bluff","county":"Columbus County","state":"NC","lat":34.311864945000025,"lon":-79.04046070099997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-01-31","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Exploration/Settlement"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A rambling one-story frame building in Fair Bluff, Columbus County, North Carolina, on the east bank of the Lumber River at Main and Orange Streets. Known as the Wooten-Powell House or Trading Post, it is reported by local tradition to date from about 1803.","why_significant":"The nomination presents it as one of the oldest buildings in Columbus County. Local tradition holds that John Wooten built it and that it served as a trading center for the Lumber River community for about fifty years, until the railroad ended large-scale river trade. It later became a Powell family home and has remained a private residence.","narrative":"Beside the Lumber River in Fair Bluff, North Carolina, stands a rambling one-story frame building long known as the Trading Post. Local tradition credits John Wooten with building it about 1803 at a spot called the \"fair bluff,\" where river boats tied up to carry furs, lumber and naval stores. The original block had two equal rooms, said to have been a store to the west and living quarters to the east, with shed rooms and engaged porches. Kitchen-dining and east wings were added through the nineteenth century, and a small temple-form outbuilding, said to have held a dairy and storeroom, stands nearby. Interior finishes include flush sheathing, paneled wainscots and simple mantels. The Powell family acquired the house, probably in the 1820s, and it became a private home after the railroad ended large-scale river trading in the 1850s. It is regarded as one of the oldest buildings in Columbus County and an early commercial outpost of the region.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"John Wooten (by local tradition)","architectural_style":"Vernacular Federal character","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied private residence in good condition, altered by additions.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:57.651159-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/86/7196/47719686/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/78001940.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47719686","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powell_House_(Fair_Bluff,_North_Carolina)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q18156950"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/columbus-county/powell-house-78001940/"}