Main Street Historic District-Winters
Also known as: Downtown Winters Historic District
Why it's listed
Downtown Winters is anchored by a single block of Main Street, where two facing rows of one- and two-story commercial buildings run between Railroad Avenue and First Street. The earliest, a brick opera house and a neighboring market, date to 1876, soon after the town was founded as the northern end of the Vaca Valley Railroad. Later buildings followed after an 1892 earthquake destroyed many early structures. They include the 1889 DeVilbiss Hotel designed by Sacramento architect A.A. Cook, a stone building by stonecutter Benoit Bertholet, the 1904 Bank of Winters Business Block, and a Classical Revival bank of 1912. Styles range from Italianate and Eastlake to Queen Anne and Classical Revival. The district was listed because it traces how the town's commerce grew with the fruit industry and agribusiness, from the coming of the railroad to just after World War II. Although storefronts have been altered, the block keeps the scale and rhythm of a small rural town center.
Significance in brief: The district represents the growth of commerce in Winters, largely tied to agriculture, from the arrival of the railroad in the 1870s to just after World War II. It has buildings from each era of growth, and despite alterations it still conveys the character of a small, rural but active town.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 96001536, listed January 2, 1997. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 1--48 Main St., Winters |
|---|---|
| County | Yolo County |
| Listed | January 2, 1997 |
| Reference number | 96001536 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architect / builder | A.A. Cook of Sacramento (DeVilbiss Hotel); Benoit Bertholet and B. Bertholet & Sons (stonework, Bertholet Building, Hercules stone); A.D. Miller and Charles Mathews (Bank of Winters Business Block) |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian/Italianate; Late Victorian/Queen Anne; Late 19th & 20th Century Revival/Classical Revival |
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Commerce |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | 13 contributing and 8 non-contributing resources, including one vacant lot. Many ground floors have been altered, and the buildings are in commercial use, including a winery, shops and offices. |
| Acreage | 3 |
| Coordinates | 38.52153, -121.96936 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 96001536.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5303612
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.