Morgan Farm
Also known as: Nathan Morgan Home Place
Why it's listed
Morgan Farm, in rural Sumter County, Georgia, is a working farmstead that has stayed in one African-American family since Nathan Morgan, born a slave, bought 202 acres in 1886. He built a modest central-hall farmhouse with an ell wing around 1890, hauling lumber by wagon from a sawmill. Behind the house stand a smokehouse, cotton barn, mule barn, corn crib, hen house and hog pen, scattered according to function. Beyond them lie a kitchen garden, fruit trees, pastures and fields. The farm has been continuously operated for more than a century and was named a Georgia Centennial Farm. The nomination stresses its rarity: fewer than ten documented African-American owned and operated farms appeared among 38,000 surveyed properties in the state. It is also valued for its largely intact vernacular architecture and its landscape of work, which reflect a small southern farm of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the farm is an extremely rare example of an African-American farm bought by a former slave in 1886 and operated by his family for over 100 years. It also has an intact vernacular farmhouse, an unusually large number of historic outbuildings and a preserved landscape of work.
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 98000145, listed February 26, 1998. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 770 Old Dawson Rd., Smithville |
|---|---|
| County | Sumter County |
| Listed | February 26, 1998 |
| Reference number | 98000145 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1886-1947 |
| Architectural style | Vernacular (central hall with ell wing) |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Landscape Architecture, Black, Architecture, Agriculture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The form lists the current function of the house as vacant/not in use, while the fields and outbuildings remain in agricultural use. The farm is still operated by the Morgan family. |
| Acreage | 117.4 |
| Coordinates | 31.99427, -84.28242 (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 98000145.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q134524979
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.