{"nrhp_refnum":"85003129","name":"Seaboard Coastline Building","other_names":["Old City Hall"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1 High St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Portsmouth (Independent city)","county":"Portsmouth","state":"VA","lat":36.83478019900008,"lon":-76.29669664799997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1985-10-10","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Transportation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A five-story brick and concrete former railroad terminal and office building at 1 High Street on the Portsmouth, Virginia waterfront, built in 1894-95 and enlarged in 1914 by the Office of the Chief Engineer of the Seaboard Air Line Railway.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building was a major symbol of rail transportation and land-and-sea commerce in Portsmouth, serving as the northern terminus and headquarters of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad until 1958. It also notes the distinctive half-round north facade, intended to evoke a streamlined locomotive, which may have foreshadowed Streamline Moderne design by about thirty years.","narrative":"Overlooking the Elizabeth River at the foot of High Street, this five-story brick and concrete building served as Portsmouth's central train station and the northern headquarters of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad. The first three floors were built in 1894-95 from in-house railroad plans, and the top two floors were added in 1914 exactly as the original drawings specified. Its rounded north facade, with arched entrances and windows, was meant to recall a streamlined locomotive. The railroad carried cotton, fertilizer, coal and produce through the port, and the terminal sat beside the ferry landing and docks. Passenger traffic fell after World War II, the railway moved its offices to Richmond in 1955, and the station closed in 1958. The city then used the building as city hall until 1980. The exterior was coated with stucco-like Gunite in 1972, and the interior was stripped in 1959. A private rehabilitation was under way at the time of the nomination.","period_of_significance":"1894/1914","architect_builder":"Office of the Chief Engineer, Seaboard Air Line Railway","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Vacant since the city moved out in 1980; a three million dollar private rehabilitation for apartments, offices, retail and a restaurant is under way.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:01.065802-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/84/6825/41682584/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/85003129.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85003129/8b7230774c-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85003129/8b7230774c-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Capt1922","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Seaboard_Air_Line_Building.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Capt1922</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:Seaboard_Air_Line_Building.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41682584","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seaboard_Coastline_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16899874"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/portsmouth/seaboard-coastline-building-85003129/"}