{"nrhp_refnum":"85000588","name":"Lentz, John A., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"321 9th St. NW","address_restricted":false,"city":"Hickory","county":"Catawba County","state":"NC","lat":35.73662626600003,"lon":-81.35235145399997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1985-03-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A ca. 1890 two-story frame house at 321 Ninth Street NW in Hickory, Catawba County, North Carolina, with a late Classical Revival character, built by John Albert Lentz. A brick outbuilding stands behind it.","why_significant":"The house is tied to John A. Lentz, a Hickory manufacturer, lumberman, mayor and loan association director who helped many residents, especially in the black community, to own homes. It is also associated with the residential and industrial development of Hickory. Later owner Jake Schoonderwoerd, a Holland-born businessman and civic leader, is cited for a career resembling Lentz's.","narrative":"Built around 1890 at 321 Ninth Street NW in Hickory, this two-story frame house sits on a shaded lot high above the street. Its most striking feature is a full-length, two-level front porch with Tuscan Doric columns and turned balusters. Inside, the original stair with its heavy carved newel survives, though most other interiors were remodelled in the 1960s and 1970s, and a one-story wing was added on the north side. A brick outbuilding stands behind the house. The house was built by John Albert Lentz (1860-1925), an orphan who became one of Hickory's leading businessmen. He founded the Hickory Novelty Company, later ran a lumber company, served as mayor in 1911 and 1912, and as a loan association director helped about 500 residents build homes, especially in the black community. A later owner, Jake Schoonderwoerd, a Holland-born packaging executive and civic leader, adds a parallel story of local enterprise.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"Unknown (built by John Albert Lentz)","architectural_style":"Late Classical Revival influence","criteria":["A","B"],"status_note":"Listed as occupied, in good condition, and used as a private residence; interior heavily remodelled in the 1960s and 1970s.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:57:49.003375-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/76/7173/47717376/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/85000588.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85000588/19142a4ec4-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85000588/19142a4ec4-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Tylerg","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Lentz_House_Hickory_North_Carolina.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Tylerg</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:John_Lentz_House_Hickory_North_Carolina.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47717376","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_A._Lentz_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q18153550"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/catawba-county/lentz-john-a-house-85000588/"}