{"nrhp_refnum":"79003109","name":"Bowdre-Rees-Knox House","other_names":["Half Way House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"SW of Thomson on Old Wrightsboro Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Thomas","county":"McDuffie County","state":"GA","lat":33.53829667800005,"lon":-82.54770756399995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-01-19","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A raised, one-and-one-half-story weatherboard cottage southwest of Thomson on Old Wrightsboro Road in McDuffie County, Georgia, built about 1806 for Thomas Bowdre and his wife Ephatha Rees. It is also known as the Half Way House.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is locally significant for its architecture and history. It is described as one of the earliest and best preserved examples of the raised cottage type in Georgia, with most fine interior details intact. Its site is tied to the former Quaker township of Wrightsboro and may hold archaeological potential.","narrative":"Southwest of Thomson, between the Old Stagecoach and Wrightsboro roads, stands a raised, one-and-one-half-story weatherboard cottage built soon after 1806 for Thomas Bowdre, a Virginia native, and his wife Ephatha Rees. The couple raised ten children there, and Bowdre later farmed 1,540 acres with forty-four slaves according to the 1827 tax digest. In 1835 the house passed to Vincent Rees, who lived there until 1885; it later went to T.A. Scott and then, in 1907, to Peter S. Knox, whose family kept it. The house retains a heart-pine Federal-style mantelpiece, paneled wainscoting, pine floors and a brick-floored basement. Additions include two front bedrooms, a rear shed and a 1974 deck. The Belle Meade Hunt Club uses it as a club center and calls it the Half Way House. It was listed for its local architectural and historical importance, its early raised cottage form, and possible archaeological value tied to Wrightsboro.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Unknown","architectural_style":"Raised cottage","criteria":[],"status_note":"Renovated in 1974 for use by the Belle Meade Hunt Club as an entertainment and club center; condition described as well preserved in its original setting. The form's status box appears marked unoccupied.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:40.304304-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_GA/79003109.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/93208902","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":null},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/georgia/mcduffie-county/bowdre-rees-knox-house-79003109/"}