{"nrhp_refnum":"78001969","name":"Bingham School","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"NC 54 and SR 1007","address_restricted":false,"city":"Oaks","county":"Orange County","state":"NC","lat":35.95374988900005,"lon":-79.25418521099994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-01-18","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A complex of buildings at Oaks in western Orange County, North Carolina, centered on an L-shaped house with an early nineteenth century log and frame ell and a mid-nineteenth century Greek Revival block, plus a smokehouse, well house and later outbuildings.","why_significant":"The site housed the Bingham School from 1845 until 1864, one of several North Carolina locations of a school founded by the Binghams that gained a statewide reputation for academic excellence. The nomination states these are the only buildings associated with the school at any of its many locations still standing. The house also has notable vernacular Greek Revival finishes, including woodgraining and marbleizing.","narrative":"Set in the rolling Piedmont farmland of western Orange County, this group of buildings at Oaks once served as a boys' school run by William J. Bingham and his sons. The L-shaped house combines a log and frame ell from the early nineteenth century with a two-story Greek Revival block, probably built for the Binghams. Inside, plain vernacular mantels sit alongside paneled doors and wainscots finished with expert woodgraining and marbleizing. A colonnaded porch with stuccoed Doric columns of wedge-shaped brick faces a shaded courtyard. A well house and a timber-frame smokehouse stand nearby. Bingham moved his school here in 1845, seeking to teach away from town distractions. The school grew under his sons, became a military academy in 1864, and then moved to Mebanesville and later Asheville. The Oaks buildings are the only ones surviving from any of the school's locations, which makes them a lasting reminder of a notable nineteenth century family of educators.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899 (specific dates 1845-1864)","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Vernacular Greek Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as unoccupied, in fair to good condition and largely unaltered; the nomination notes the house may be renovated.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:56.59691-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/38/7216/47721638/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/78001969.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78001969/7a83791e7d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78001969/7a83791e7d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Jerrye &amp; Roy Klotz, MD","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BINGHAM_SCHOOL,_OAKS,_ORANGE_COUNTY.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jerrye &amp;amp; Roy Klotz, MD</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:BINGHAM_SCHOOL,_OAKS,_ORANGE_COUNTY.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47721638","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bingham_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q19600512"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/orange-county/bingham-school-78001969/"}