Montford Area Historic District
Why it's listed
Montford is a large, mostly wooded residential district on the slopes north of Battery Park Hill in Asheville, built mainly between the late 1880s and the 1920s. It holds well over six hundred buildings, most of them houses in Queen Anne, shingle, bungaloid and Colonial Revival styles, often combining wood shingles, pebbledash, stucco and stone. The Asheville Loan, Construction, and Improvement Company began the subdivision in 1889, and lumber merchant George Willis Pack later drove most of its growth. Richard Sharp Smith, who supervised construction of Biltmore House, designed or inspired many of the larger houses, and the neighborhood's original granite curbing and brick sidewalks survive. Its residents were largely professionals and businessmen, many of them newcomers to the city, and the district is regarded as Asheville's leading middle class neighborhood of its era and as its most intact.
Significance in brief: The district is described as a homogeneous, largely intact upper middle class neighborhood from Asheville's 1889-1920s boom period, with a wide range of Queen Anne, shingle, bungaloid and Colonial Revival houses. Its architecture and landscaping, including original granite curbing and brick sidewalks, are presented as a well-defined and identifiable place. Its association with Richard Sharp Smith, who supervised construction of Biltmore House, and with the Asheville residents who shaped its character, adds to its importance.
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 77000991, listed November 25, 1977. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Irregular pattern along Montford Ave., Asheville |
|---|---|
| County | Buncombe County |
| Listed | November 25, 1977 |
| Reference number | 77000991 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1880-1929 |
| Architect / builder | Richard Sharp Smith (architect for many houses in the district, though only a few are documented); Oliver Davis Revell (builder, for some houses); various for the remainder |
| Architectural style | Queen Anne, Shingle, Colonial Revival, Bungalow |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Health/Medicine, Education, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Acreage | 200 |
| Coordinates | 35.60586, -82.56889 (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 77000991.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6905555
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.