Peterboro Land Office
Also known as: See also: Smith, Gerrit, Estate
Why it's listed
Peterboro Land Office is a small brick building from 1804 on the village green in Peterboro, Madison County, New York. Measuring about twenty-four by twenty-eight feet, it has a gable roof, a delicate Federal cornice, six-over-six windows and a brick vestibule at the entrance. Local brick was laid in common bond, with Flemish bond on the front. Inside are built-in shelves and drawers for ledgers, plus an iron-doored brick vault. A detached smokehouse with an ash pit stands behind. Peter Smith, an early developer who leased and later owned a tract of about 50,000 acres, used the office to keep records and deeds for transactions involving more than 100,000 acres across fifty-four counties. His son Gerrit Smith continued the business into the later nineteenth century. The Smith mansion burned in 1936, leaving the office as the only surviving structure from the family's early estate. It remains unaltered, though vacant and boarded up, and the town hopes to make it a museum.
Significance in brief: It is the only surviving building of Peter Smith's vast estate and a rare, exceptionally intact early land office. It housed records and deeds for land transactions covering more than 100,000 acres in fifty-four counties. It is also tied to the prominent Smith family, including abolitionist Gerrit Smith.
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 84002498, listed September 7, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Peterboro Rd., Peterboro |
|---|---|
| County | Madison County |
| Listed | September 7, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84002498 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architectural style | Federal (vernacular Federal) |
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Exploration/Settlement |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Vacant and boarded up but unaltered; owned by the Town of Smithfield, which hopes to open it as a museum when funds allow. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Within district | Smith, Gerrit, Estate |
| Coordinates | 42.96757, -75.68678 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.
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 84002498.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7177985
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.