{"nrhp_refnum":"80002773","name":"Pleasant Valley Wine Company","other_names":["Great Western Winery"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"SR 88","address_restricted":false,"city":"Rheims","county":"Steuben County","state":"NY","lat":42.40095789950007,"lon":-77.25425365859664,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-11-18","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Architecture","Agriculture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A complex of nine connected fieldstone winery buildings on a hillside along County Road 88 near Rheims, in the Town of Urbana, Steuben County, New York, built between 1860 and 1911 for the Pleasant Valley Wine Company (also known as Great Western Winery).","why_significant":"The nomination calls it the oldest winery in the Finger Lakes and one of the oldest continuous wine producers in the country, and notes it was Bonded Winery Number One in both the United States and New York State. Architecturally, it is significant for its hillside siting, which gives natural insulation for ageing wine, and for its largely intact, utilitarian stone buildings that reflect changing construction methods over fifty years.","narrative":"Set in a narrow valley south of Keuka Lake, this group of nine coursed-fieldstone buildings was built into a hillside beside County Road 88 between 1860 and 1911. The winery began when thirteen farmers formed the Hammondsport and Pleasant Valley Wine Company in 1860, buying land from Charles D. Champlin, whose family controlled it until 1955. Its Great Western Champagne label, introduced in 1870, drove steady expansion, and the nearby post office took the name Rheims after the French champagne capital. The company is described as the oldest winery in the Finger Lakes and as Bonded Winery Number One in both the nation and New York State. It survived Prohibition by selling sacramental and medicinal wine. The buildings use the hillside for a steady 58 degrees Fahrenheit, as in French and Napa Valley wineries. Early sections have barrel vaults and Italianate lintels, while later ones use steel beams and brick arches. Alterations have been few, and the winery has remained in continuous use.","period_of_significance":"1860-1911","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Italianate details (pedimented lintels) on utilitarian fieldstone winery buildings","criteria":[],"status_note":"Continuously used as a winery since 1860; alterations described as minimal, with modern company buildings nearby that are excluded from the nomination. Condition checked as excellent, altered, original site.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:43.222533-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/80002773.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002773/821a329cfc-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002773/821a329cfc-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Pubdog","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pleasant_Valley_Wine_Company_1_Apr_11.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Pubdog</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pleasant_Valley_Wine_Company_1_Apr_11.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75322001","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleasant_Valley_Wine_Company","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7204088"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/steuben-county/pleasant-valley-wine-company-80002773/"}