Block 0-100 East Franklin Street Historic District
The National Park Service has not published a boundary polygon for this district; the map shows the listed properties inside it and the district's reference point.
Why it's listed
This 1½-block district west of downtown Richmond contains 28 buildings, mostly two- and three-story brick town houses. Built between the 1830s and about 1920, they show Greek Revival, Italianate, Renaissance Revival, Queen Anne and Colonial Revival styles. The oldest include the William C. Allen double house at 4-6 E. Main Street (about 1836) and the Hillyard and Wortham houses on East Franklin Street. The grandest is the Kent-Valentine House at 12 E. Franklin Street, designed by Boston architect Isaiah Rogers and built in 1845-46, with a two-story Ionic portico added in 1904. The land was once part of Thomas Rutherfoord's western addition to Richmond, and its lots were sold after 1820 and developed by various owners. Brick herringbone sidewalks, cast-iron fences and a consistent two- to three-story scale unify the area. Originally residential, most buildings now serve as offices or businesses. The district was listed as the only remaining cohesive residential block on East Franklin Street and as a good example of preserving historic fabric downtown.
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) · catalog entry. Generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29).
| Styles | Greek Revival, Italianate, Renaissance Revival, Queen Anne, Georgian/Colonial Revival, and Romanesque Revival town houses |
|---|---|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Acreage | 5 |
| Boundary source | not published |
| Full listing page | Block 0-100 East Franklin Street Historic District (property record) |
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.