{"nrhp_refnum":"80002595","name":"Aurora Village-Wells College Historic District","other_names":["See Also:Aurora Steam Grist Mill"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"NY 90","address_restricted":false,"city":"Aurora","county":"Cayuga County","state":"NY","lat":42.75117704650003,"lon":-76.70114682244949,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-11-19","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Education","Architecture","Religion","Invention"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A historic district stretching along Main Street (NY Route 90) on the eastern shore of Cayuga Lake in Aurora, Cayuga County, New York. It joins the old village at the north with the historic section of Wells College at the south, and includes Oak Park and Ledyard cemeteries.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the district is significant for its concentration of historic buildings tied to Aurora's early commercial importance and to the growth of Wells College. It holds a large collection of Federal and Greek Revival buildings, rare in the Finger Lakes area. The village and college have been mutually dependent for over a century and form a cohesive group of architecturally distinguished buildings.","narrative":"Aurora is a linear village along the eastern shore of Cayuga Lake, and this district covers both sides of Main Street from the old village at the north to the historic Wells College campus at the south. Oak Park and Ledyard cemeteries are included. Buildings range from the 1793 Patrick Tavern, the oldest in town, to the Federal-style Peter Fort and Riford houses, the Greek Revival Taylor house and a rare wood-frame Greek Revival storefront, the Thompson Block. Churches in Gothic Revival and Italianate design, a Masonic lodge of 1819 and a stone mill add variety. The campus features Gothic Revival, Italianate and English Collegiate buildings arranged along a curving drive above the lake. The district was listed because of its concentration of buildings tied to the village's early commercial importance and to Wells College's growth. Federal and Greek Revival examples are rare in the Finger Lakes region, and the village and college have long depended on one another. Adaptive reuse has left few intrusions.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Samuel Mandell (local architect); A.J. Davis (Henry Wells residence); William H. Ranlett (A.C. Boyer cottage)","architectural_style":"Federal, Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne, Stick Style and other styles","criteria":[],"status_note":"Marked occupied; condition checked as excellent and good. The village and college continue to reuse historic buildings, and the district has few intrusions, mostly modern houses.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:42.445532-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/80002595.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002595/b9f6d3f09a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002595/b9f6d3f09a-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Lvklock","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Public_Library_Town_Hall.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Lvklock</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:Public_Library_Town_Hall.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75316687","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurora_Village%E2%80%93Wells_College_Historic_District","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4822623"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/cayuga-county/aurora-village-wells-college-historic-district-80002595/"}