{"nrhp_refnum":"90001894","name":"Venable, W. J., House","other_names":["#32"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"426 N. Wall","address_restricted":false,"city":"Belton","county":"Bell County","state":"TX","lat":31.059035290000054,"lon":-97.45985396399999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1990-12-26","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story frame house at 426 North Wall in Belton, Bell County, Texas, built about 1879, probably for W. J. Venable. It is a vernacular L-plan dwelling with Gothic Revival character.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is significant under Criterion C in architecture as one of the few examples of this vernacular multi-gabled house type in Central Texas. The form was probably brought to Belton by settlers from the upland South after the Civil War. An 1881 bird's-eye map shows five similar houses in Belton, and this is the only one still standing.","narrative":"Built around 1879, probably for W. J. Venable, this two-story frame house at 426 North Wall in Belton is a vernacular interpretation of the Gothic Revival style. It follows an L-plan but is sited with the outside of the L forming the public facades. Its most distinctive feature is a series of steep gabled wall dormers that give the house 13 gables. Weatherboard covers the walls, two limestone chimneys pierce the roof, and a two-story east porch has boxed columns and Classical Revival detailing. Venable sold the house in 1892 to T. W. Cochran, a local merchant who added a rear wing in the same style about 1900. The multi-gabled form was popular in Kentucky and Tennessee around the Civil War and likely reached Texas with settlers from the upland South. An 1881 bird's-eye map shows five similar houses in Belton, and this is the only survivor. Although deteriorated, most original features remain.","period_of_significance":"c. 1879","architect_builder":"unknown","architectural_style":"Vernacular L-plan; Gothic Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Described as deteriorated, though most original architectural features are intact. Historic and current function is a single dwelling.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:21.092604-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/81/9682/40968281/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/90001894.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40968281","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110000876"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/bell-county/venable-w-j-house-90001894/"}