{"nrhp_refnum":"79001656","name":"Doughton, Robert L., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"NC 18","address_restricted":false,"city":"Laurel Springs","county":"Alleghany County","state":"NC","lat":36.41061470600005,"lon":-81.26503763499994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-08-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Agriculture","Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story frame farmhouse in a simplified, country version of the late Queen Anne style, standing beside Cranberry Creek near Laurel Springs in Alleghany County, North Carolina. Local tradition says Robert L. Doughton built it in 1899.","why_significant":"The house is associated with Robert L. Doughton (1863-1954), who served 42 consecutive years in Congress and chaired the House Ways and Means Committee from 1933 to 1945. It is also a representative turn-of-the-century farmhouse and one of the more prominent houses built in this farming region of Alleghany County.","narrative":"Set at the foot of a wooded hill beside Cranberry Creek near Laurel Springs, this two-story frame farmhouse is a plain, country interpretation of the late Queen Anne style. It has a steeply pitched hip roof, gabled projections on all four sides, bracketed eaves, a front porch and a center-hall interior with a notable arched stair. Local tradition says Robert L. Doughton built it in 1899 on land he had assembled over the preceding years. Doughton (1863-1954) served on the State Board of Agriculture and in the State Senate before winning election to Congress in 1911. He remained there until 1953 and chaired the House Ways and Means Committee from 1933 to 1945, helping shape tax policy and New Deal legislation. His daughter lived in the house until about 1968. It was then vandalized, sold at auction in 1971, and left unoccupied, yet it remains structurally sound and is regarded as a community landmark to a locally rooted politician of national standing.","period_of_significance":"1898","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Late Queen Anne (simplified, country version)","criteria":["B","C"],"status_note":"Unoccupied since about 1968 and damaged by vandals in 1971, but described as structurally sound.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:56.944977-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/12/7189/47718912/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/79001656.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47718912","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_L._Doughton_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q17508616"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/alleghany-county/doughton-robert-l-house-79001656/"}