Tompkins Street Historic District
Also known as: See Also:Tompkins Street/Main Street H.D. (Boundary Increase
Why it's listed
Tompkins Street in Cortland, New York, anchors a district of about 49 structures running from Main Street to the Cortland Rural Cemetery. Quiet residences line the street, ranging from simple frame houses to the mansions of leading families, in styles from Italian-inspired to shingle style. The oldest house, built in 1808 and rebuilt in 1916, dates to the organization of Cortland County. On Main Street, three-story brick commercial blocks from the later nineteenth century include mansard-roofed and flat-roofed examples. The district reflects Cortland's growth after the county seat was chosen in 1810. Early construction on the street came with the Randall merchant family, whose stores dominated local trade for decades. After the Civil War, banks and vehicle manufacturing brought wealthy businessmen, who replaced older houses with larger homes. Manufacturers of wire cloth, the Fitzgerald-Wickwire family, were among them. Together the buildings show the village's change from a rural settlement to an industrial center.
Significance in brief: The varied architecture of Tompkins Street shows the stages of Cortland's growth, from a sparsely populated rural setting to a prosperous commercial and industrial center after the Civil War. Wealthy manufacturers and professionals built large, stylistically varied homes there, including members of the Fitzgerald-Wickwire family. The district also preserves the Randall family properties tied to early merchant activity.
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 75001179, listed March 18, 1975. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Tompkins and intersecting streets from Main St. to Cortland Rural Cemetery, Cortland |
|---|---|
| County | Cortland County |
| Listed | March 18, 1975 |
| Reference number | 75001179 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architectural style | Wide variety of styles from the early 19th to the 20th century, including Italianate-inspired, shingle style, Victorian commercial vernacular, and colonial |
| Areas of significance | Community Planning and Development, Commerce |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition is marked good and altered; some buildings on Tompkins Street have been unsympathetically remodeled. The district is occupied and in commercial and private residential use. |
| Acreage | 49.4 |
| Within district | Tompkins Street/Main Street Historic District (Boundary Increase) |
| Coordinates | 42.59530, -76.18630 (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 75001179.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7820370
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.