{"nrhp_refnum":"88002539","name":"Richardson, Asher and Mary Isabelle, House","other_names":["Bel-Asher","The Big House","La Casa Grande"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"US 83","address_restricted":false,"city":"Asherton","county":"Dimmit County","state":"TX","lat":28.442180353000026,"lon":-99.76256895099999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1988-11-22","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story hand-cut sandstone residence known as Bel-Asher, built 1909-1911 on Highway 83 in Asherton, Dimmit County, Texas, for rancher and town founder Asher Richardson. It was designed by San Antonio architect Alfred Giles, and the nominated site includes a barn and cottage.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is an important example of Alfred Giles's residential work after 1900, combining Beaux Arts Classicism with the Prairie School. It was also the centerpiece of Asherton, the town Richardson planned, and a focal point of local social life. It is unique in Dimmit County for its size and style and retains a high degree of integrity.","narrative":"Bel-Asher is a two-story sandstone house on Highway 83 in Asherton, Texas, completed in 1911 for rancher Asher Richardson. San Antonio architect Alfred Giles designed it as the centerpiece of the town Richardson planned and named for himself, on a 10-acre block at its center. Local sandstone was cut by hand because labor was cheap and hauling materials from the nearest railroad, 40 miles away, was costly. The house blends Beaux Arts Classicism with the Prairie School, with horizontal massing, wide eaves, interlinked porches, and an elaborate roofscape with five brick chimneys. Inside are a pine staircase, pressed metal ceilings, and a full basement. A stone barn and cottage stand behind it. Richardson held 240,000 acres and chartered a railway in 1909, and he entertained Dimmit County's elite here, making the house a social focal point. The listing recognizes it as a notable example of Giles's post-1900 residential work, largely intact and unique in the county.","period_of_significance":"1900- (specific dates 1909-11)","architect_builder":"Alfred Giles","architectural_style":"Hybrid of Beaux Arts Classicism and Prairie School","criteria":[],"status_note":"Marked occupied, private residence, in fair condition, and still held by Richardson descendants; it retains much interior detailing and many original furnishings.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:21.378888-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/13/9718/40971813/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/88002539.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/88002539/b4f43ebb00-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/88002539/b4f43ebb00-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Billy Hathorn","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bel-Asher_House,_Asherton,_TX_IMG_4212.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Billy Hathorn</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:Bel-Asher_House,_Asherton,_TX_IMG_4212.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40971813","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asher_and_Mary_Isabelle_Richardson_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4804860"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/dimmit-county/richardson-asher-and-mary-isabelle-house-88002539/"}