East Hill Historic District
Why it's listed
East Hill is a 65-acre neighborhood of 254 principal buildings on a steep hill east of downtown Ithaca, New York, bounded by the Cascadilla and Six-Mile Creek gorges. Buildings date from about 1830 to the 1930s, but most went up between 1870 and 1920, when Cornell University's opening and growth, along with horsecar and street railway links to downtown, set off waves of construction. The streets climb roughly 350 feet from Aurora Street to Eddy Street and hold a wide mix of styles: modest Greek Revival houses, Italianate and Victorian Gothic residences, Queen Anne and Shingle Style homes, Colonial Revival houses and Arts and Crafts examples. Notable landmarks include the Henry W. Sage Mansion at 512 East State Street and the Liberty Hyde Bailey House on Sage Place. Architect William H. Miller designed many buildings. Boarding houses, double houses and brick commercial blocks reflect student housing demand. The boundaries include the most intact historic streetscapes.
Significance in brief: The district holds the greatest concentration of Ithaca's architecturally and historically significant buildings. Most were built between 1870 and 1920, during building booms tied to the opening and expansion of Cornell University. It shows a broad range of American styles, with several designs by architect William H. Miller.
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 86001652, listed August 14, 1986. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Cascadilla Creek, Eddy St., Six Mile Creek, and Aurora St., Ithaca |
|---|---|
| County | Tompkins County |
| Listed | August 14, 1986 |
| Reference number | 86001652 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architect / builder | William H. Miller; Clarence A. Martin |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne, Romanesque Revival, Renaissance Revival, Colonial Revival, Arts and Crafts |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as in excellent condition, with the buildings occupied; the district is mainly residential, with a few commercial, educational and former institutional buildings. |
| Acreage | 65 |
| Coordinates | 42.34006, -76.48602 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
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 86001652.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5328605
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.