Clark-Keith House
Why it's listed
Built about 1827 on Main Street in Caledonia, Livingston County, this two-and-a-half-story house is made of cut stone blocks with smooth-faced quoins, set on a fieldstone foundation beneath a side-gabled roof with stepped parapet walls and paired brick chimneys. The five-bay front has twelve-over-one wood windows and a Federal-style center doorway with sidelights, fluted pilasters and an elliptical fanlight. Inside, a center hall holds the original staircase, and the first floor retains a Federal mantel and a hearth with a beehive bake oven. The second floor keeps the layout from its years as a tavern, including an L-shaped ballroom. By the 1830s the building was a tavern serving travelers on the Caledonia and Scottsville horse railroad and housed the post office. Banks and the village library used it between 1885 and 1900. It has been a residence since 1920, and it is valued as a rare, highly intact Federal stone building in the village.
Significance in brief: The house is significant for its architecture as a rare, highly intact example of vernacular Federal-style cut stone residential construction in Caledonia, and one of the most notable of its style in Livingston County. It also played a role in the village's development as a tavern, post office location, bank and temporary library before becoming a residence.
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 98001114, listed August 28, 1998. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 3092 Main St., Caledonia |
|---|---|
| County | Livingston County |
| Listed | August 28, 1998 |
| Reference number | 98001114 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1827 |
| Architectural style | Early Republic/Federal |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Currently used as a single dwelling, with a restaurant also listed as a current function; a later rear addition connects it to the adjacent Keith Press building. |
| Acreage | 1 |
| Coordinates | 42.97295, -77.86002 (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 98001114.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5127125
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.