Baylis, M., House
Approximate location: the National Park Service places this pin arbitrarily within the property, not at a surveyed point (stated accuracy ±12 m).
Why it's listed
Located on a half-acre lot along Sweet Hollow Road in Melville, in the Town of Huntington, this house dates to about 1820. It is a one and one-half story, five-bay shingled dwelling with a saltbox profile, a center entrance with a transom and a shed-roofed porch on square columns, and six-over-six windows on every elevation. A gable-roofed side wing and a rear wing extend the main block, and an early twentieth century shed sits behind the house. The property was listed because it is an intact, representative example of late settlement period building in Huntington. It is one of only five individually nominated early nineteenth century houses with a five-bay center-entrance plan, and one of two in Melville. Unlike similar houses enlarged from smaller earlier dwellings, it was built as a single unit. An M. Baylis occupied it in the 1830s, and locally it is known as the Woolsey-Ketchum Buffett House. The builder is unknown.
Significance in brief: The house is argued to be an intact, representative example of late settlement period architecture in Huntington. It is one of only five individually nominated early nineteenth century buildings with a five-bay center-entrance plan. It and the Sweet Hollow Presbyterian Church Parsonage are the only such examples in the Melville area. It was built as a single dwelling, with no earlier sections.
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 85002487, listed September 26, 1985. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 530 Sweet Hollow Rd., Melville |
|---|---|
| County | Suffolk County |
| Listed | September 26, 1985 |
| Reference number | 85002487 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Late settlement period architecture; five-bay center-entrance plan with saltbox profile |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition is rated fair; the building remains a residence, as originally used, and no threats are known. A non-contributing early twentieth century shed stands at the rear. |
| Acreage | 0.5 |
| Coordinates | 40.79002, -73.41669 (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 85002487.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q13529086
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.