{"nrhp_refnum":"97000941","name":"La Farge Retainer Houses","other_names":["Biddlecom House and Budlong House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Main St., S of jct. of Main St. and Ford Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Orleans","county":"Jefferson County","state":"NY","lat":44.191112544500044,"lon":-75.96747260791216,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1997-08-21","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Two adjacent two-story limestone houses, the Budlong House and the Biddlecom House, on the east side of Main Street (Route 180) in the hamlet of LaFargeville, Town of Orleans, Jefferson County, New York. Both were built about 1835 for John LaFarge.","why_significant":"The houses are distinctive examples of Federal/Greek Revival stone architecture in the town of Orleans and show a high level of stone workmanship. They are also tied to John LaFarge's effort to attract settlers, since they are reputed to have served as model homes. They are described as rare survivors in a rural agricultural region and retain a high degree of integrity.","narrative":"Two limestone houses stand side by side on Main Street in LaFargeville, in the Town of Orleans, Jefferson County. Built around 1835 for John LaFarge, a French shipping merchant who had bought a large tract of land in northern New York, they are reputed to have served as model homes to show new settlers the quality of village life he hoped to create. Each is two stories tall, front-gabled and three bays wide, with a side-hall entrance and a rear service wing. The Budlong House keeps much of its original interior, including its floor plan, woodwork and kitchen cupboards. The Biddlecom House was extensively updated in the 1880s, gaining a new entry surround, windows, staircase and a cast-iron fence. Neither was built with fireplaces, which suggests heating by coal stoves. LaFarge left in 1838, and both houses later became homes of prominent local families. Their stonework, integrity and link to LaFarge's settlement plans give them local significance.","period_of_significance":"c.1835","architect_builder":"Unknown; the form says they may have been the work of stonemason Hial Cook, though this is not clearly documented.","architectural_style":"Early Republic/Federal (Federal/Greek Revival detailing)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The Budlong House is described as currently unoccupied; the Biddlecom House is still a private single-family residence with a modern kitchen and garage.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:51.286492-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/97000941.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97000941/09f8e4edb8-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97000941/09f8e4edb8-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Stephen Schweitzer","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Farge_Biddlecom_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Stephen Schweitzer</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Farge_Biddlecom_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75313284","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Farge_Retainer_Houses","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6462416"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/jefferson-county/la-farge-retainer-houses-97000941/"}