{"nrhp_refnum":"96001455","name":"Royster, Clark, House","other_names":["VDHR File No. 192-71"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"300 Rose Hill Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Clarksville","county":"Mecklenburg County","state":"VA","lat":36.62749503100008,"lon":-78.55766417199999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1996-12-16","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Exploration/Settlement"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Federal-style brick dwelling at 300 Rose Hill Avenue in Clarksville, Mecklenburg County, Virginia, built in 1840 for Clark Royster. It sits on a one-acre parcel with a rear wing, a sun porch and several outbuildings.","why_significant":"The house is tied to Clark Royster, who laid out the town of Clarksville in 1818 and promoted its growth as a tobacco inspection and trading center. It qualifies under Criteria A and B for settlement and its link to Royster. It also qualifies under Criterion C as a well-preserved example of antebellum architecture in Virginia's lower piedmont.","narrative":"Built in 1840, this two-story Federal-style brick house at 300 Rose Hill Avenue in Clarksville was the home of Clark Royster, who laid out the town in 1818 beside the Roanoke River. Royster ran a ferry, a tavern and a tobacco warehouse, and Clarksville grew into one of Virginia's larger tobacco inspection towns. The house has a symmetrical three-bay front in Flemish bond, a fluted pilaster doorway with a diamond-pattern transom, a center-hall plan and detailed interior mantels. A rear wing was built in two sections, with a sun porch and a 1940s kitchen added later. After Royster's death in 1848, his widow lived there until about 1860, and the Humphreys family later owned it into the mid-twentieth century. A restoration in the 1960s retained original chair rails, doors and mantels. The property is recognized for its link to the town's founder and for its well-preserved antebellum architecture.","period_of_significance":"1840-1860","architect_builder":"Unknown","architectural_style":"Early Republic/Federal","criteria":["A","B","C"],"status_note":"Still used as a single dwelling. It was restored between 1962 and 1964, when the deteriorated front porch was removed.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:00.509732-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/42/6819/41681942/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/96001455.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96001455/f18946ea68-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96001455/f18946ea68-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Clark_Royster_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Clark_Royster_House.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"02000625","name":"Clarksville Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/virginia/clarksville-historic-district-02000625/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41681942","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clark_Royster_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14712178"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/mecklenburg-county/royster-clark-house-96001455/"}