{"nrhp_refnum":"78002939","name":"Steele House","other_names":["Steele-van Wagner House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"217 Brewer St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Navasota","county":"Grimes County","state":"TX","lat":30.389248516000066,"lon":-96.08343581599996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-06-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Agriculture","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Victorian frame residence on a half-acre corner lot at 217 Brewer Street in Navasota, Grimes County, Texas, built in 1896 for cotton farmer A. G. Steele and designed and built by J. E. Watkins.","why_significant":"The nomination presents it as a well-preserved example of Eastlake-inspired late Victorian architecture. It was built by a prominent Grimes County cotton farmer and occupied continuously by his family until 1972. Few alterations have been made over nearly 80 years of family ownership.","narrative":"Built in 1896 at 217 Brewer Street in Navasota, this two-story Victorian frame house sits on a half-acre corner lot among native trees. J. E. Watkins designed and built it for A. G. Steele, a prominent Grimes County cotton farmer who farmed with his brother north of town. The house is known for its Eastlake-inspired detail: punched and spindled barge boards, gingerbread trim, a wrap-around porch with turned columns, imbricated shingle siding, and stained-glass windows. Inside, five main rooms open off a central hall on each floor, with a black walnut staircase, golden oak mantels with Majolica tile, and curly red pine wainscoting. Steele died in 1900, and his widow and descendants lived in the house until it was sold in 1972. Because the family kept it for nearly 80 years, alterations were few, including removal of two chimneys in 1962 and a cupola after World War II. The house is in good condition and undergoing restoration.","period_of_significance":"1896","architect_builder":"J. E. Watkins","architectural_style":"Eastlake-inspired late Victorian","criteria":[],"status_note":"Good condition with only minor repairs and paint needed; current residents are restoring it as a private residence.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:18.8577-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/95/9721/40972195/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/78002939.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002939/f8a8fc4237-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002939/f8a8fc4237-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 4.0","author":"Larry D. Moore","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Steele_house_2008.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Larry D. Moore</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Steele_house_2008.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40972195","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110000441"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/grimes-county/steele-house-78002939/"}