Perry-Shepherd Farm
Also known as: Shepherd, Swansie Farm
Why it's listed
Built about 1890 by Jonathan and Alvah Perry, the two-story farmhouse on this sixty-two acre property in northwestern Ashe County is a decorated I-house with a double-porch front and Queen Anne-inspired sawn balustrades, brackets and cut-work. Its rear wing is two rooms wide, unusual for the county, and the interior retains beadboard walls, turned stair balusters and a center passage plan. The Shepherd family, who bought the farm in 1904, ran it as a working farm through the mid-twentieth century, raising livestock, tobacco, beans and fruit. The property includes a heirloom apple orchard, with varieties such as Winesap and Yellow Transparent, and a blueberry patch planted about 1965. Its house type reflects the prosperous 1880 to 1910 period in Ashe County, and the farm illustrates the county's shift from subsistence to cash-based agriculture by the 1950s.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the farmhouse is a good example of a common Ashe County house type from 1880 to 1910, with Queen Anne-inspired ornament and a front-gable, double-tier porch, and that the farm as a whole shows the agricultural history of the county, including its orchard, blueberry production and shift toward cash crops by the 1950s.
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 06000289, listed April 19, 2006. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 410 Swansie Shepherd Rd., Lansing |
|---|---|
| County | Ashe County |
| Listed | April 19, 2006 |
| Reference number | 06000289 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | C. 1890 1956 |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Agriculture, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The house is undergoing a major rehabilitation following the Secretary of the Interior's Standards to repair termite damage and remove late-twentieth century changes. |
| Acreage | 62 |
| Coordinates | 36.50864, -81.56303 (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 06000289.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q18156743
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.