{"nrhp_refnum":"93000824","name":"Eldridge, Bowling, House","other_names":["Ridgecrest","VDHR File No. 41-81"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1651 Fox Hill Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lynchburg","county":"Bedford (city and county)","state":"VA","lat":36.69813432800004,"lon":-79.12865886799995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1993-08-12","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Federal-style frame plantation house, called Ridgecrest, built in the 1820s for Bowling Eldridge in the Elmo area of southwestern Halifax County, Virginia. The nomination requests moving it to Route 794 in Bedford County.","why_significant":"The house is significant under Criterion C for its fine Federal-style exterior design and interior millwork, and as a good example of an 1820s plantation house. It retains most of its original fabric, including the stair, mantels, chair rails and door surrounds. The relocation request argues that its architectural value survives a change of setting.","narrative":"Ridgecrest, also known as the Bowling Eldridge House, is a two-story frame plantation house built in the 1820s in southwestern Halifax County, Virginia. It has a gable roof with metal sheathing, beaded weatherboard siding, brick end chimneys, a two-story rear ell and a five-bay front. Inside, a single-pile center-passage plan holds a stair with carved scrolls, elaborate door surrounds, reeded and linen-fold chair rails and Federal mantels. The house was recognized for this fine Federal-style detailing and as a good example of an 1820s plantation house. Eldridge's farm once covered nearly 1,000 acres; the house now sits on 0.43 acres surrounded by clearcut land. After a century of absentee ownership and decades of vacancy, the foundation and framing have deteriorated. The nomination proposes dismantling the house, restoring it under the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and re-erecting it on a seven-acre site in Bedford County.","period_of_significance":"1820's","architect_builder":"unknown","architectural_style":"Federal","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Described as essentially unoccupied for 60-80 years and in a state of disrepair, with a deteriorated brick foundation and termite and water damage. The owners plan to restore it and move it to a new site.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:59.631725-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/42/6797/41679742/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/93000824.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/93000824/756c2ab677-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/93000824/756c2ab677-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bowling_Eldridge_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bowling_Eldridge_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41679742","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowling_Eldridge_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14712054"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/bedford/eldridge-bowling-house-93000824/"}