{"nrhp_refnum":"82003454","name":"Freeman House","other_names":["The Stateline House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"N of Gates on US 13","address_restricted":false,"city":"Gates","county":"Gates County","state":"NC","lat":36.55073134100007,"lon":-76.75503435799999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-09-23","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A vernacular farmhouse known as the State Line House or Freeman House, standing on the boundary between Virginia and North Carolina in Gates County, North Carolina. It grew through three building phases from a one-room dwelling with loft into a center-hall plan house, with outbuildings including a smokehouse, barns and a stable.","why_significant":"The house is significant as an example of the evolution of the regional vernacular farmhouse, with its one-room original section regarded as an important survival of a type rarely found in recognizable form. Its location straddling the state line gave it a distinctive history, including its owner's dual justice-of-the-peace role and the marriages performed there. The nomination also cites its representation of Federal, late-Federal and Greek Revival building characteristics.","narrative":"Standing directly on the line between Virginia and North Carolina, this vernacular farmhouse began as a one-room dwelling with a loft, probably in the late eighteenth century, and was later enlarged in stages into a side-hall and then a center-hall plan. Its builder is not documented. The earliest documented occupant was Samuel Cross, and the house was the centre of a farming operation of about 350 acres through the nineteenth century. Edmund J. Freeman, who bought the property in 1876, served as a justice of the peace in both states and performed many marriages for couples crossing the border to wed. The one-room section, with its tripartite mantel and enclosed corner stair, is regarded as a rare surviving example of an early regional house type. The house is also known for stories of local duels and divided loyalties among family members.","period_of_significance":"1817-1917","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Federal, late-Federal and Greek Revival (vernacular farmhouse)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The home is in excellent condition and is occupied by its owners.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:41.580487-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/31/7204/47720431/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/82003454.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82003454/a965828e1b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82003454/a965828e1b-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Freeman_House_on_NC-VA_state_line.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Freeman_House_on_NC-VA_state_line.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47720431","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeman_House_(Gates,_North_Carolina)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q19461838"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/gates-county/freeman-house-82003454/"}