{"nrhp_refnum":"87000987","name":"Griffin, Alexander B., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"417 S. Walnut St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Ravenna","county":"Portage County","state":"OH","lat":41.15380125400003,"lon":-81.23984948999998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1987-07-02","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story timber frame Greek Revival house at 417 S. Walnut Street in Ravenna, Portage County, Ohio, built in 1847 by Alexander B. Griffin, with a one-and-one-half story rear ell.","why_significant":"The house is a fine example of a gable-front Greek Revival residence in Ravenna and is one of two well-preserved examples in its neighborhood. It is also tied to Alexander B. Griffin, an important early cabinetmaker and the fourth mayor of Ravenna, who lived there from 1847 until his death in 1900.","narrative":"Built in 1847 at 417 S. Walnut Street in Ravenna, Ohio, this two-story timber frame house shows the Greek Revival style in its gable-front form. Details include a wide entablature, end returns and an offset entrance with a six-panel door, wooden pilasters and a heavy entablature hood. A small room off the north side served as the cabinet shop of Alexander B. Griffin, who built the house and lived there from 1847 until his death in 1900. Griffin is considered the finest cabinetmaker of Ravenna's early period, and his work won honors at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. He also served as Town Clerk, Justice of the Peace and fourth mayor, and in 1856 he established Courthouse Park. Next door stands a similar Griffin-built house with a center entrance, and together the two show small variations on one early house type. Inside, the front parlor retains original window surrounds and a marbleized metal mantel, and several doors are grained to imitate maple or walnut.","period_of_significance":"1847-1900","architect_builder":"Griffin, Alexander B.","architectural_style":"Greek Revival","criteria":["A","B"],"status_note":"Currently used as a single dwelling; the interior has been divided for multi-family housing in the past, but some early trim, doors and a mantelpiece remain.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:14.643043-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/87000987.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87000987/1461d4998f-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87000987/1461d4998f-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alexander_B._Griffin_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alexander_B._Griffin_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71990961","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q138655321"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/portage-county/griffin-alexander-b-house-87000987/"}