{"nrhp_refnum":"89001922","name":"Clifton","other_names":["DHL File 02-155"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"VA 729 at Rivanna River","address_restricted":false,"city":"Shadwell","county":"Albemarle County","state":"VA","lat":38.00702505900006,"lon":-78.39718670199994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1989-11-02","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Clifton is a large two-story wood frame house on a 7.85-acre wooded bluff above the Rivanna River, off State Route 729 near Shadwell in Albemarle County, Virginia. Its core was built in the first quarter of the 19th century by Thomas Mann Randolph, with Colonial Revival additions made in the 1920s.","why_significant":"The nomination argues that Clifton was built and used by Thomas Mann Randolph, a Governor of Virginia, congressman and son-in-law of Thomas Jefferson. It is the only surviving building of Randolph's planned river port of North Milton, which was meant to compete with Milton across the river. It is also a fine example of early 20th-century Colonial Revival domestic architecture built around an intact Federal-style core.","narrative":"Clifton is a rambling two-story shingled house on a wooded bluff above the Rivanna River in eastern Albemarle County, Virginia. Its core is a five-room farmstead built in the early 1800s by Thomas Mann Randolph, a Governor of Virginia, congressman and son-in-law of Thomas Jefferson. Randolph planned the river port of North Milton here, opposite the thriving town of Milton, but the town never developed. The house is the only remaining evidence of that effort. Randolph used it as a workplace and, after losing his Edgehill farm to debt, as a refuge until his death in 1828. Later owners added wings in the 1830s and 1840s. In the 1920s a major Colonial Revival renovation raised the house to twenty-three rooms, added porches and a terrace, and kept the original Federal-style interior largely intact. The property also has a brick office, a ruined springhouse, an ice well, a chicken coop and a garage.","period_of_significance":"1800-1828","architect_builder":"Unknown (built and used by Thomas Mann Randolph; the 20th-century renovation architect was not identified)","architectural_style":"Federal; Colonial Revival","criteria":["A","B"],"status_note":"Listed in the form as a former single dwelling, now used as an inn. The main house and outbuildings are described as in good condition, while the springhouse is a ruin.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:00.781703-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/11/6794/41679411/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/89001922.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001922/5bf5dac033-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89001922/5bf5dac033-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Clifton_driveway_signage.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Clifton_driveway_signage.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"07001236","name":"Southern Albemarle Rural Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/virginia/southern-albemarle-rural-historic-district-07001236/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41679411","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clifton_(Shadwell,_Virginia)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14712185"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/albemarle-county/clifton-89001922/"}