{"nrhp_refnum":"90000350","name":"Blacknall, Richard D., House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"300 Alexander Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Durham","county":"Durham County","state":"NC","lat":36.00388578500008,"lon":-78.92698441699997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1990-03-01","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-and-one-half story Queen Anne style brick house built about 1889 for pharmacist Richard D. Blacknall in Durham, North Carolina. It was moved in 1985 to 300 Alexander Avenue, about two blocks from its original site.","why_significant":"The house is argued to be Durham's only identified surviving nineteenth century brick residence and its only surviving Queen Anne style house built of brick. It retains characteristic Queen Anne features and a well-preserved interior. It is also tied to Richard D. Blacknall, a pharmacist and Presbyterian mission founder, and later to Erwin Cotton Mills, which housed supervisors there.","narrative":"Built about 1889 for Durham pharmacist Richard D. Blacknall, this two-and-one-half story brick house is described as the city's only identified surviving nineteenth century brick residence and its only Queen Anne house in brick. It has an asymmetrical form, a multi-gabled roof, shingled gables, tall corbeled chimneys and a wraparound porch with turned posts and sawn spandrels. Inside, the side hall plan, heart pine floors, plaster walls and five coal-burning fireplaces remain. Blacknall also helped found a Presbyterian mission church in West Durham. Erwin Cotton Mills bought the house in 1909 and rented it to supervisors until Duke University acquired it in 1965. It was abandoned in 1978 and faced demolition for highway construction, so it was moved in April 1985. After restoration in 1987-1988 it was adapted for professional offices, with a new basement suite added at the rear.","period_of_significance":"C. 1889","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Queen Anne","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Restored in 1987-1988 and in use as professional offices.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:57:49.444198-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/7/7177/47717707/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/90000350.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/90000350/1c2912d00c-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/90000350/1c2912d00c-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Jerrye &amp; Roy Klotz, MD","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RICHARD_D._BLACKNALL_HOUSE;_DURHAM_COUNTY,_NC.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jerrye &amp;amp; Roy Klotz, MD</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:RICHARD_D._BLACKNALL_HOUSE;_DURHAM_COUNTY,_NC.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47717707","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_D._Blacknall_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q19460551"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/durham-county/blacknall-richard-d-house-90000350/"}