Lower Avenue A Historic District
Why it's listed
Nine modest frame houses line the east side of Avenue A in Rome, Georgia, between North Fifth Street and Turner-McCall Boulevard. Built from the 1880s to the 1920s, they sit on uniform 50 by 200 foot lots with well-kept lawns. All but one are a single story, all have porches, and several have a small central front gable above the porch roof. Some are duplexes with two small front porches. The area began as part of DeSoto, a suburban village west of the Oostanaula River that Rome annexed in 1885 and that grew quickly after a bridge opened in 1886, a streetcar line arrived and nearby industries provided jobs. The houses are an intact record of the housing once common for Rome's lower-middle class, and few comparable groups survive in the city. Turner-McCall Boulevard, widened in the 1960s, now separates this block from the larger Upper Avenue A district to the north.
Significance in brief: The district is significant for community planning and development as part of DeSoto, an early suburb of Rome annexed in 1885. It is also significant in architecture for its intact group of simple houses documenting lower-middle class housing in Rome from the 1880s to the 1920s. Few intact areas of such housing remain in the city.
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 83000194, listed September 1, 1983. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Avenue A between N. 5th St. and Turner-McCall Blvd., Rome |
|---|---|
| County | Floyd County |
| Listed | September 1, 1983 |
| Reference number | 83000194 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1880s - 1920s |
| Architect / builder | Multiple |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Community Planning and Development, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Marked as occupied, privately owned, and in use as private residences; condition listed as altered, original site. |
| Acreage | 2 |
| Coordinates | 34.25951, -85.17328 (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 83000194.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q49519823
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.