Clarke, Luther, House
Why it's listed
Built between about 1820 and 1830, this two-story wood frame house on West Main Street in Dryden village is a five-bay, two-bay-deep Federal style residence with a one-and-one-half story rear wing. It has a low-pitched gable roof with a wide cornice entablature, narrow clapboards, triangular gable openings and plank frame construction. The central entrance has a transom, sidelights, pilasters and a simple entablature, and the front windows were originally twelve-over-twelve. The nomination describes it as the most representative wooden Federal house in the village, with a slightly off-center entrance and plank construction marking it as a rural vernacular example. Deed research traced the land to a military grant of the 1780s. Reverend Luther Clarke of the Methodist Church acquired the house in 1835 and may have built the front section. Later owners included Colonel Lewis Barton, a village president, and the hardware merchant Cyrus French, whose family held it until 1918. It remains a private home.
Significance in brief: The nomination calls it the most representative example of a Federal style wooden residence in the village, with fine proportions, original twelve-over-twelve windows and a Neoclassical entrance. As one of Dryden's earliest substantial houses, it reflects the shift from early settlement to a prosperous community. It also retains a high level of integrity and has ties to prominent local citizens.
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 84003119, listed June 8, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 39 W. Main St., Dryden |
|---|---|
| County | Tompkins County |
| Listed | June 8, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84003119 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Reported in good condition, still in use as a private home, with no known threats. It has been reroofed and some windows altered, and the Bakers restored it after 1962. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.49027, -76.30043 (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 84003119.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6705527
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.