{"nrhp_refnum":"92001186","name":"Town of Potomac","other_names":["DHR File No. 100-136"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Roughly bounded by Commonwealth Ave., US 1, E. Bellefonte Ave. and Ashby Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Alexandria (Independent City)","county":"Alexandria","state":"VA","lat":38.82867635500003,"lon":-77.05273097141901,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1992-09-10","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Transportation","Politics/Government","Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A historic district covering most of the former Town of Potomac, now part of Alexandria, Virginia. It includes the St. Elmo, Del Ray, Abingdon and Hume subdivisions, platted from 1894 and developed through about 1941.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the district is a well-preserved late-19th and early-20th-century suburban development shaped by railroad and trolley commuting to Washington, D.C. It also cites the original grid plan and 15-foot setbacks, a wide Mount Vernon Avenue laid out for grand houses, and a wide variety of domestic, commercial, religious and civic architecture. The work of many local builders and architects, and mail-order buildings, add to its interest.","narrative":"Once an incorporated town, Potomac is now a neighborhood district in Alexandria, Virginia, made up of the St. Elmo, Del Ray, Abingdon and Hume subdivisions. Developers Wood and Harmon of Ohio platted St. Elmo and Del Ray in 1894, and the town was incorporated in 1908 and annexed by Alexandria in 1930. Residents commuted by rail and electric trolley to Washington, D.C., or worked at the Potomac Yards rail facility. The district retains its original grid, deep lots, large trees and 15-foot setbacks. Housing includes Foursquares, Bungalows, Colonial Revival, Queen Anne and Folk Victorian examples, plus Sears mail-order houses and a portable chapel shipped from Michigan. Mount Vernon Avenue holds two-story brick buildings with shops below and apartments above, some in Art Deco and Moderne styles. The 1926 combined Fire Station and Town Hall, designed by Francis Drischler, is the most important civic landmark. The district was listed for its suburban planning, transportation history and architecture.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Drischler, Francis - Architect; Raymond, Newman H. - architect/builder; Glassman, Jacob - builder; Horton, Fred W.; Poladian, J. H.; Saulsbury, P.A.; Hamaker, Kent; and others listed","architectural_style":"Queen Anne, Colonial Revival, Bungalow/Craftsman, Folk Victorian, Tudor Revival, Mediterranean Revival, Moderne, Art Deco","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Still largely intact; many houses remain in residential use, Mount Vernon Avenue is now mostly commercial, and the railroad right-of-way has become a linear park. The former bank at 2401 Mount Vernon Avenue is described as vacant.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:00.364609-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/34/6794/41679434/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/92001186.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001186/f911da62b9-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001186/f911da62b9-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Farragutful","credit_html":"Farragutful, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Town_of_Potomac_05.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41679434","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potomac,_Virginia","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7235028"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/alexandria/town-of-potomac-92001186/"}