{"nrhp_refnum":"91002041","name":"Port Micou","other_names":["DHR File No. 28-274"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"VA 674, at Rappahannock R.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Loretto","county":"Essex County","state":"VA","lat":38.12286098200005,"lon":-77.05948298944347,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1992-02-06","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Agriculture","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Port Micou is a historic river-port farm on the south bank of the Rappahannock River in northern Essex County, Virginia, with a ca. 1825-50 wood-frame granary and a story-and-a-half dwelling on raised brick basements, plus a jetty and a noncontributing ranch house.","why_significant":"The granary and dwelling are significant for their link to the agricultural history of the region and as unusually well-made, intact examples of their building types. They date from a period of agricultural renewal under Robert Payne Waring and his son-in-law Richard Baylor, who ran progressive, highly capitalized farms. The wharf also reflects the property's long role in river trade.","narrative":"Port Micou sits on the south bank of the Rappahannock River in northern Essex County, Virginia. Founded in the early eighteenth century, it served as a trading center for river commerce, and an earthen and rubble jetty still reaches into the river. Two buildings from about 1825-50 survive near the water: a large wood-frame granary with a tall loft and a brick basement, and a small frame dwelling on a high raised brick basement. The granary is built of hand-hewn oak timbers with pegged joints, and its louvered windows and heavy studded doors served ventilation and security for stored grain. The dwelling is believed to have housed an overseer or farm manager. Both were probably built for Robert Payne Waring, one of Virginia's wealthiest planters, or for his son-in-law Richard Baylor. Both men used soil-improving methods and modern equipment. The property was listed for its agricultural history and for the quality and preservation of these two buildings. A mid-twentieth-century ranch house is noncontributing.","period_of_significance":"1835-1860","architect_builder":"Unknown builder","architectural_style":"Federal (dwelling); No Style (granary)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Current function listed as agricultural storage and vacant dwelling; the surrounding land is leased for wheat and corn.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:00.707417-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/41/6804/41680441/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/91002041.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/91002041/9392df688f-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/91002041/9392df688f-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Port_Micou_entrance.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Port_Micou_entrance.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41680441","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Micou","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14713087"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/essex-county/port-micou-91002041/"}