Orton Plantation (Boundary Increase)
Why it's listed
Orton stands on the west bank of the Cape Fear River near Winnabow, with a brick core dating to about 1735 when Roger Moore built his house there. In the 1840s the house was enlarged into a two-story Greek Revival temple form with a Doric portico, and Neoclassical Revival wings and interior work followed in 1910 under architect Kenneth Murchison. The house passed through a series of owners, including Governor Benjamin Smith, and was reclaimed in the 1880s as a winter hunting retreat after the Civil War and Reconstruction. Its gardens, developed in the early twentieth century with designs by landscape architect Robert Swann Sturtevant, are among the best known in the Southeast. The property is regarded as a major example of the romanticized Southern mansion, combining layered architectural periods and a wealthy plantation history based on naval stores and rice.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues that Orton is an impressive composite of three centuries of history, shaped by naval stores and rice production and by a series of notable owners. It is described as perhaps the best-known antebellum showplace in North Carolina, with superb gardens and a Greek Revival temple-form house. The boundary increase relates to the wider plantation and its landscape.
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). NRHP reference 13000698, listed September 9, 2013. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 9149 Orton Rd., Winnabow |
|---|---|
| County | Brunswick County |
| Listed | September 9, 2013 |
| Reference number | 13000698 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1735-1910 |
| Architect / builder | Kenneth Murchison (architect for the 1910 additions); Robert Swann Sturtevant (landscape architect) |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Agriculture, Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Politics/Government, Social History, Historic - Non-Aboriginal |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The gardens are open to the public and the rice fields are leased to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission as a waterfowl sanctuary. |
| Acreage | 826 |
| Within district | Brunswick Town Historic District |
| Coordinates | 34.04573, -77.94935 (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 13000698.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives)
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.