{"nrhp_refnum":"94000778","name":"Clifton","other_names":["VDHR File No. 81-288"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"VA 631 N side, 2000 ft. E of jct. with US 11","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lexington","county":"Rockbridge County","state":"VA","lat":37.791783208000055,"lon":-79.41918002900299,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1994-07-22","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Clifton is a two-story red-brick Federal-style house on the north bank of the Maury River near Lexington, Rockbridge County, Virginia, begun about 1815, with a stone servant's quarters or foreman's house and a wooden icehouse on about 26 acres.","why_significant":"The nomination argues that Clifton is an important example of Federal-style domestic architecture in a form popular in the Valley of Virginia. It is listed under Criterion C for architecture, with a period of significance of c. 1815-1860. The house also has associations with notable occupants such as William Preston Johnston.","narrative":"Clifton is a two-story red-brick house set on a steep slope above the north bank of the Maury River near Lexington, Virginia. Begun about 1815 in the Valley Federal style, it has a seven-bay front, a gabled standing-seam metal roof, four chimneys and a north wing added around 1840. The sloping site gives it a three-story look from the south. Inside, original woodwork survives, including wainscoting, chair rails and several mantels, though the house was remodeled in 1960 and again in the 1980s. A stone cottage and a double-walled wooden icehouse remain on the property, which now holds about 26 acres of the original 200-acre grant. The house was listed for its architecture as a notable example of Federal-style domestic design in the Valley of Virginia, with a period of significance from about 1815 to 1860. Later residents included educator and author William Preston Johnston, who wrote a biography of his father while living there.","period_of_significance":"c. 1815-1860","architect_builder":"unknown","architectural_style":"Early Republic: Federal (Valley Federal)","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Still used as a single-family dwelling with a secondary structure; remodeled in 1960 and the 1980s, with a new portico built in 1983.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:00.822173-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/80/6833/41683380/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/94000778.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/94000778/56bac55190-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/94000778/56bac55190-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Clifton,_Old_Buena_Vista_Road.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Clifton,_Old_Buena_Vista_Road.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41683380","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clifton_(Lexington,_Virginia)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q15210939"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/rockbridge-county/clifton-94000778/"}