Titus, Elias, House
Why it's listed
Built around 1840 on Titusville Road in the Town of LaGrange, this Greek Revival house was erected by local builders for Elias Titus, who ran a woolen mill on nearby Wappinger Creek. Its front is a tetrastyle Ionic portico with a pediment and a large triangular window. The frame house has a two-and-a-half-story main block and a one-and-a-half-story kitchen wing. Inside are eared door and window casings, heavy moldings, black marble mantels, a cantilevered stair, and Ionic pilasters framing the opening between the parlors. Vinyl siding added in 1991 was fitted carefully over the original clapboard, and later additions have been small. The mill prospered during the Civil War, when demand for wool goods was high, and the Titus family built more than a dozen houses and a school for workers. The mill burned in the 1890s. This house and two others are the main surviving traces of the hamlet, which makes the property important both for its architecture and as a record of that community.
Significance in brief: The house is presented as a noteworthy regional example of vernacular Greek Revival domestic architecture, with a monumental Ionic temple front and sophisticated interior woodwork. It is also one of the last surviving reminders of Titusville, the woolen mill hamlet founded by Elias Titus and his family, whose mill and most related buildings are gone.
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 06000568, listed July 12, 2006. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 170 Titusville Rd., Red Oaks Mill |
|---|---|
| County | Dutchess County |
| Listed | July 12, 2006 |
| Reference number | 06000568 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | c. 1840-1880 |
| Architect / builder | Unknown (built by local builders) |
| Architectural style | Mid 19th Century: Greek Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Industry |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still used as a single dwelling; vinyl siding added in 1991 over original clapboard, with a few small additions and an enclosed west porch. |
| Acreage | 3.8 |
| Coordinates | 41.66480, -73.87172 (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 06000568.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5360618
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.