Jarvis-Fleet House
Why it's listed
Sitting on a half-acre lot at 138 Cove Road in Huntington Beach, this two and one-half story, seven-bay shingled house dates to about 1700 in its eastern section, with the western section added around 1750. The Fleet family built it. Cove Road is one of the area's oldest thoroughfares, running from Huntington Harbor toward the Centerport Harbor shoreline. The house kept its early eighteenth century plan, interior finishes and trim, even after changes in the later nineteenth century. Those changes included a central shingled cross-gable with a round-arched window and a shed-roofed front porch on turned posts with scroll-sawn corner braces, reflecting Centerport's shift from an isolated settlement to a busy waterfront village. The house is also linked to the Fleet family, locally known for marine and harborfront businesses; nearby Fleet's Cove carries their name. It remains a residence in excellent condition and is one of the few surviving reminders of the community's earliest settlement.
Significance in brief: It is one of a small group of early settlement dwellings in Huntington and one of the few buildings in the Centerport area tied to its early settlement. It keeps an early eighteenth century plan and interior finishes and trim. Its late nineteenth-century Victorian additions reflect Centerport's growth into a waterfront village, and it is associated with the locally prominent Fleet family of marine and harborfront enterprises.
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 85002538, listed September 26, 1985. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 138 Cove Rd., Huntington |
|---|---|
| County | Suffolk County |
| Listed | September 26, 1985 |
| Reference number | 85002538 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Architect unknown; builder: Fleet family |
| Areas of significance | Exploration/Settlement, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still used as a residence, as it was originally; condition marked excellent, with no known threats and no outbuildings. |
| Acreage | 0.5 |
| Coordinates | 40.89957, -73.39152 (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 85002538.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6161206
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.