Nelson, Thomas, House
Why it's listed
Built around 1860 in Peekskill, New York, this two-story Italianate house was constructed for Thomas Nelson, a New York City attorney and politician who had served as Chief Justice of the Oregon Territory's Supreme Court. The clapboard house has a slightly hipped roof, a bracketed wooden cornice, tall two-over-two windows with molded trim, and a one-story porch with paired posts and scrolled brackets that wraps around to the west side. Inside, a central hall holds an unusual freestanding walnut staircase, and the public rooms keep their plaster cornices, ceiling medallions and marble mantels. A small well house, likely of nineteenth-century origin, stands near the northeast corner. The property was listed for its architecture, as a well-preserved example of the villa-type homes built for the upper middle class in Westchester County's villages and small cities in the mid-nineteenth century. The original estate of about 8.5 acres was gradually subdivided, leaving the house on roughly 1.67 acres.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is a distinctive, intact example of Italianate residential architecture in Westchester County under Criterion C. It shows the style's hallmarks, including a bracketed cornice, hip roof, large windows with decorative surrounds and a wrap-around porch. Inside, the original marble mantels, plasterwork and an unusual freestanding walnut staircase survive, and both exterior and interior retain a high degree of integrity.
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 01000846, listed August 8, 2001. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 1231 Seymour Ln., Peekskill |
|---|---|
| County | Westchester County |
| Listed | August 8, 2001 |
| Reference number | 01000846 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | c. 1860 |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian: Italianate |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still in use as a single dwelling; the form reports high integrity on both exterior and interior, with changes limited mainly to 1950s storm windows, a modernized kitchen and a 1950 garage. |
| Acreage | 1.7 |
| Coordinates | 41.29678, -73.91306 (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 01000846.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7792706
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.