Crego, Mrs.. I.L., House
Why it's listed
Built around 1870 on the edge of Baldwinsville, this two-story brick house stands among mature trees, surrounded by cornfields south of the Seneca River. Mrs. Charlotte Crego, a widow who ran the family farm, hired Syracuse architect Archimedes Russell to design it, and Millar Adams built it. Russell completed hundreds of commissions in central New York, and this is one of his few known rural works. The house is a square Italianate villa with a low pyramidal roof, bracketed cornice, round-arched and segmentally arched windows, a three-sided bay, and porches with chamfered columns. Inside are marble mantels, plaster medallions, double paneled entry doors and an intact stair balustrade. The porch on the north side was enlarged in the early twentieth century, and the kitchen has been updated, but the building follows Russell's drawings, which the family kept. It was listed for its architectural value rather than its farm history.
Significance in brief: The house is significant under Criterion C as a highly intact rural Italianate dwelling designed by Archimedes Russell, described as the region's foremost architect of the period. It is one of his few known rural works, and the original Russell drawings survive. It is nominated only for architecture, not for its agricultural history, because the house was separated from the farmland and barns.
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 07000631, listed June 27, 2007. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 7979 Crego Rd., Baldwinsville |
|---|---|
| County | Onondaga County |
| Listed | June 27, 2007 |
| Reference number | 07000631 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | c.1870 |
| Architect / builder | Archimedes Russell, Architect; Millar Adams, Builder |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian: Italianate |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still used as a single-family dwelling; it has been maintained, with a modernized kitchen and a few interior changes, and remains largely faithful to Russell's design. |
| Acreage | 1.5 |
| Coordinates | 43.15584, -76.35335 (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 07000631.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6929782
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.