{"nrhp_refnum":"97001657","name":"Live Oak Historic Commercial District","other_names":[],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Along Broadway between Pennington Rd. and Elm St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Live Oak","county":"Sutter County","state":"CA","lat":39.27497386400006,"lon":-121.66174687699998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1998-01-23","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A downtown commercial historic district in Live Oak, Sutter County, California, along Broadway and Fir Street, with a railroad parcel to the east. It holds thirteen resources (twelve buildings and one site), built from about 1875 to the 1940s.","why_significant":"The district is the city's only collection of commercial buildings built before 1930 and reflects the growth of local commerce from the 1870s to the start of the Great Depression. It is closely tied to the arrival of the Southern Pacific Railroad and early retail business. It retains a high degree of integrity despite some demolitions and neglect.","narrative":"Live Oak's historic commercial district occupies Broadway and Fir Street in the city's downtown, with a railroad parcel on the east side of Broadway. It contains twelve buildings and a row of palm trees, nine of which contribute to its historic character. The oldest building is Live Oak Hall, dating from about 1875, with retail space below and a community meeting room above. Other contributors include a 1913 bank branch, 1920s brick stores and a bakery building, a 1882 railroad depot, and a wood warehouse. Palms planted around 1900 link the depot and warehouse visually. The district developed after the Southern Pacific Railroad laid tracks in 1869 and made Live Oak the main shipping point in Sutter County. It is the only surviving group of pre-1930 commercial buildings in the city. Some demolitions and several vacant, boarded buildings have affected it, but the area still closely resembles its 1930 appearance.","period_of_significance":"1875-1930","architect_builder":"Unknown","architectural_style":"Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals: Classical Revival; Late Victorian: Italianate; Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals: Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Many contributing buildings are in poor condition with boarded doors and windows; five of seven buildings are described as vacant, and two important buildings are slated for rehabilitation. Current use listed as specialty store, warehouse and vacant/not in use.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:27.776828-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/97001657.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97001657/38074f7c87-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97001657/38074f7c87-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"NoeHill","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Live_Oak_Historic_Commercial_District_in_California_October_2011.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">NoeHill</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Live_Oak_Historic_Commercial_District_in_California_October_2011.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123862176","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_Oak_Historic_Commercial_District","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6655352"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/sutter-county/live-oak-historic-commercial-district-97001657/"}