Dunning House
Why it's listed
Set on the highest point in the hamlet of Slate Hill, in the town of Wawayanda, Orange County, this wood-clapboard house at 633 Ridgebury Road grew in stages over more than a century. Its earliest part, a timber-framed section on a stone foundation at the southeast corner, dates to the mid-eighteenth-century settlement period. In the late eighteenth or early nineteenth century the house was enlarged to a five-bay, center-hall plan with a fine Federal entry and a reeded archway in the hall. Greek Revival moldings and plaster cornices followed, and late in the nineteenth century a central gable, Stick Style porch and oriel window were added. The house was listed for its architecture. It represents regional Federal style residential building, and its settlement-era core is a rare survival in Orange County. The intact floor plan, doors, hardware and trim, and the preserved rural setting, give it a high degree of integrity.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is a representative regional example of Federal style residential architecture that retains a high degree of integrity. It also preserves a rare settlement-era core, typical of early and mid eighteenth-century dwellings, along with Greek Revival and Victorian alterations that record changing tastes.
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 01001383, listed December 28, 2001. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 633 Ridgebury Rd., Wawayanda |
|---|---|
| County | Orange County |
| Listed | December 28, 2001 |
| Reference number | 01001383 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca.1750-ca.1880 |
| Architectural style | Early Republic/Federal; Late Victorian/Italianate |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed as a single dwelling in current domestic use, with one noncontributing modern greenhouse on the 1.1-acre lot. |
| Acreage | 1.1 |
| Coordinates | 41.38491, -74.45673 (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 01001383.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5315600
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.