Gainsboro Historic District

Gainsboro is a 33-block neighborhood in Roanoke, Virginia, lying north of the railroad tracks and west of Interstate 581. It grew rapidly after 1882, when the Norfolk & Western Railway established its headquarters nearby and a subsidiary company built houses for railroad workers. Most of the district's resources date from 1865 to 1917, and the majority are two-story frame single-family homes. The housing shows Queen Anne, Colonial Revival, Foursquare, Craftsman and other styles, alongside churches, a library, a theater, a hotel, medical offices and small commercial buildings. The neighborhood became the center of Roanoke's African-American community, and it includes the Henry Street commercial and entertainment area. Road projects and 1960s and 1970s redevelopment removed much of the surrounding historic fabric and weakened the commercial core, yet the street pattern and housing stock remain largely intact. The district was recognized for its connection to broad patterns of local history and for its architecture, with a period of significance running from 1834 to 1950.