Walters-Davis House
Why it's listed
Built in 1906 on a half-acre corner lot in Toccoa, this one-story Victorian Eclectic house has a square main block with a high hip roof and four gables, a rear ell, and a wraparound porch with Ionic columns and a pedimented central portico. The gables are decorated with diamond-cut shingles and sawn, turned vergeboards. Inside, a central hall holds two freestanding columns supporting a decorative screen, and carved oak and mahogany mantels differ from room to room. Lumber for the mantels and columns came from the South Georgia sawmill of Augustus Walters, who had the house built on speculation after Stephens County was created in 1905 and Toccoa boomed. Builder E.L. Prater, who bought it in 1907, also built the Stephens County Jail and the First Baptist Church. The house changed hands several times before Judge Ben Davis, a longtime bar association president and city judge, bought it in 1915 and raised his family there.
Significance in brief: The house is considered a fine, intact local example of the turn-of-the-century Victorian Eclectic style found throughout Georgia. It also illustrates quality speculative housing built during Toccoa's early twentieth century building boom after Stephens County was created in 1905. Judge Ben Davis, a prominent local attorney and city judge, lived there for many years.
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 82002464, listed June 17, 1982. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 429 E. Tugalo St., Toccoa |
|---|---|
| County | Stephens County |
| Listed | June 17, 1982 |
| Reference number | 82002464 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900- |
| Architect / builder | E.L. Prater, Builder |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian Eclectic |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Law, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed as occupied, in excellent condition and used as a private residence; some alterations noted, including an enclosed rear porch and chimneys removed above the roofline. |
| Acreage | 0.5 |
| Coordinates | 34.58039, -83.32430 (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 82002464.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q105081796
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.