Francis Plantation
Why it's listed
Francis Plantation is a cotton plantation between Davisboro and Bartow in Washington County, Georgia. Its centerpiece is a one-story, hip-roofed weatherboard house built about 1858, probably by William B. Francis. The house follows a four-room central-hall plan with a fifth room added at the back, and it has a Greek portico, pilasters and wood-grained doors and mantels. The exterior has never been painted. Fifteen outbuildings survive, among them the original kitchen, a log smokehouse, a pigeon house, a well and commissary building, a ladies' privy and four slave cabins. The property matters because it has remained almost untouched by the twentieth century. Cotton fields still stretch in every direction and no modern intrusions mar the view, apart from a power line. In 1860 the farm held 500 improved acres and produced 50 bales of cotton. Tradition holds that it escaped destruction during Sherman's march in 1864, though the story is undocumented.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the plantation has remained essentially untouched by the 20th century and shows how an antebellum Georgia cotton plantation worked. Its house, outbuildings and farmland setting survive with almost no intrusions. The descendants of the original landowner still farm the surrounding fields.
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 75000616, listed July 3, 1975. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | SE of Davisboro on SR 2189, Davisboro |
|---|---|
| County | Washington County |
| Listed | July 3, 1975 |
| Reference number | 75000616 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 19th Century (c.1858) |
| Architect / builder | Built by William B. Francis, according to the form (thought to have been built about the time of his marriage, c.1858) |
| Architectural style | Classical style plantation house with Greek portico and Victorian-style early door details |
| Areas of significance | Landscape Architecture, Military, Architecture, Agriculture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed condition is good and unaltered, on its original site, in private ownership. The main house is described as occupied or unoccupied only by a checkbox that cannot be read reliably, and the land is still farmed. |
| Acreage | 1120 |
| Coordinates | 32.93140, -82.55764 (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 75000616.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q107001101
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.