Smith, Thomas W., House
Why it's listed
Built in 1900 at 306 North Main Street in Tennille, this one-story frame house was designed by architect Charles E. Choate for Thomas W. Smith, a store owner and the town's mayor. It sits on a brick foundation under a steeply hipped, multi-gabled roof with dormers, and has rounded and angled bay windows and brick chimneys. Choate blended the Georgian Cottage and New South House types into an eclectic plan with a central hall. Inside, beaded wainscoting, paneled doors with bull's-eye corner blocks, a decorative hall screen and varied mantels survive. The original porch was later replaced with a Craftsman-style porch and porte cochere, and a rear room was added in 1902, yet the main body remains largely intact. The Smith family occupied the house for about 85 years and kept Choate's original floor plans and elevation drawings, which are rare for the county. The house is valued as an early example of Choate's residential design in Washington County.
Significance in brief: The house is a good representative example of Choate's residential work early in his career in Washington County. Its main body is essentially intact inside and out, and it combines the Georgian Cottage and New South House forms. The original construction drawings also survive, and only two other Choate drawings for the county are known.
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 94000714, listed July 28, 1994. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 306 N. Main St., Tennille |
|---|---|
| County | Washington County |
| Listed | July 28, 1994 |
| Reference number | 94000714 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900 |
| Architect / builder | Charles E. Choate, architect |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian: Queen Anne |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still used as a single dwelling; the original front porch was replaced by a Craftsman-influenced porch with a porte cochere in the 1920s. |
| Acreage | 1.5 |
| Coordinates | 32.93926, -82.81035 (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 94000714.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q134466861
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.