{"nrhp_refnum":"92000995","name":"Simmons, William Adam, House","other_names":["Simmons House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"751 Kelly Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Half Moon Bay","county":"San Mateo County","state":"CA","lat":37.463516767000044,"lon":-122.42835280599996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1992-08-18","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement","Law","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-and-a-half story wood frame house at 751 Kelly Avenue in Half Moon Bay, San Mateo County, California, built in 1865 by carpenter William Adam Simmons.","why_significant":"It is one of only three remaining 1860s residences in Half Moon Bay and one of two that use wooden slab wall construction. It is also tied to William Adam Simmons, the town's first undertaker, and his son Fred Allen Simmons, who served as constable and deputy sheriff for over forty years. The same family occupied it continuously for 125 years.","narrative":"Built in 1865 at 751 Kelly Avenue, this one-and-a-half story wood house is among only three surviving residences from the 1860s in Half Moon Bay. Its original section uses slab wall construction, in which vertical and horizontal boards are nailed together without mortise-and-tenon or stud framing; only one other house in town, the Vasquez House, still shows this method. William Adam Simmons, a New York-born carpenter, built the home himself. He later became the coastside's first undertaker and held offices in local clubs and associations. His son Fred Allen Simmons, born in the house in 1877, served as constable and then deputy sheriff for more than forty years. Members of the family occupied the house continuously from 1865 to 1990, and later changes, including a wing added between 1905 and 1911 and a rear porch added after World War II, were made by the family. Fishscale shingle trim decorates the eaveline. The house is currently vacant.","period_of_significance":"1865-1942","architect_builder":"Simmons, William","architectural_style":"Mid-19th Century","criteria":["A","B","C"],"status_note":"Vacant since the Simmons family left in 1990; landscaping has not been tended since.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:28.050652-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/92000995.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92000995/fb291af115-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92000995/fb291af115-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Sanfranman59","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:William_Adam_Simmons_House,_751_Kelly_Ave.,_Half_Moon_Bay,_CA_10-30-2011_11-44-08_AM.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Sanfranman59</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:William_Adam_Simmons_House,_751_Kelly_Ave.,_Half_Moon_Bay,_CA_10-30-2011_11-44-08_AM.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123861562","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q133522030"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/san-mateo-county/simmons-william-adam-house-92000995/"}