Brown-Kennedy House
Also known as: Brown--Kennedy--Shockley House
Why it's listed
Along Georgia State Route 59 near Carnesville stands a one-story Queen Anne cottage built around 1910, with a hipped roof, a rear gabled ell, shed porches front and back, and turned porch posts. Vinyl siding now covers the walls, but the form and interior finishes, including simple oak mantels and beveled board walls, remain largely intact. Nearby are a smokehouse, cotton house, corn crib, outhouse and covered well, set among surrounding fields. Blanton Brown built the house for his son Tom, who stayed only a couple of years. Freeman Kennedy then rented the farm for about twenty-five years, growing cotton and other crops. The property was listed for its architecture, as a rare example of this house type along the Old Federal Road, and for agriculture, as an intact small farm complex typical of the area. Its period of significance runs from about 1910 to 1946.
Significance in brief: The house is a rare example of the Queen Anne Cottage type along the Old Federal Road and has changed little in form since construction. Together with its smokehouse, cotton house, corn crib and other outbuildings, it represents a small early 20th century subsistence and cotton farm typical of north Georgia.
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 96001303, listed November 7, 1996. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | GA 59, approximately 1 mi. NE of jct. with GA 51, Carnesville |
|---|---|
| County | Franklin County |
| Listed | November 7, 1996 |
| Reference number | 96001303 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | C. 1910-1946 |
| Architect / builder | Unknown |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian/Queen Anne Cottage |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Agriculture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still used as a single dwelling; the house has vinyl siding, a covered well, and a collapsed pig pen, and the outhouse is still used. |
| Acreage | 15 |
| Coordinates | 34.35095, -83.30044 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
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 96001303.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.