{"nrhp_refnum":"82003480","name":"Smith, William E., House","other_names":["The French Country Inn"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"309 W. Railroad St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Selma","county":"Johnston County","state":"NC","lat":35.535677570000075,"lon":-78.28658752099994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-06-24","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Neo-Classical residence on a large town lot in Selma, Johnston County, North Carolina, fronting the Southern Railroad right-of-way. It was enlarged from a one-story cottage around 1912.","why_significant":"The house is presented as an imposing example of the Neo-Classical style, with a symmetrical massing and an Ionic pedimented portico. It is associated with William E. Smith, a Selma merchant who owned a clothing and millinery store and was president of the Bank of Selma when it became the First National Bank of Selma in 1915. The nomination also describes it as a unique example of this style in Selma.","narrative":"Built as a one-story cottage in Selma and enlarged around 1912 into a two-story Neo-Classical residence, the house is set on a large town lot facing the Southern Railroad right-of-way. Its most prominent feature is a pedimented portico supported by giant-order Ionic columns. The center hall plan includes an elongated Ionic column screen, an open string stair with a carved newel post, and hand-carved wood mantels, including a dining room mantel in natural oak with leaded glass plate-warmer cabinets. William E. Smith, who owned a Selma clothing and millinery store, had the house remodeled and was president of the Bank of Selma when it became the First National Bank of Selma in 1915. The building is valued for its architecture and its association with that prominent merchant and banker. Later alterations include the removal of most of the porch in the 1960s and the conversion of the first floor to a restaurant.","period_of_significance":"C. 1900-1915","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Neo-Classical","criteria":["B","C"],"status_note":"Altered; the 1960s removal of porch sections and a porte cochere, and the conversion of the building to a restaurant with a rear kitchen, are documented. The second floor was previously a hotel and has been redone as one living unit.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:40.764471-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/11/7181/47718111/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/82003480.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82003480/1a4029040f-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82003480/1a4029040f-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:William_E._Smith_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:William_E._Smith_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47718111","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_E._Smith_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q20679835"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/johnston-county/smith-william-e-house-82003480/"}