North Third Avenue Historic District
Why it's listed
Siler City's North Third Avenue Historic District lies several blocks northeast of the town's central business district and contains houses built from about 1890 to 1930, along with a 1928-1930 church. The neighborhood developed in the early twentieth century as a residential area for bankers, physicians, politicians and businessmen, and it grew gradually rather than under a single plan. Its oldest building is the frame triple-A form William Wren House of about 1890. The 1916 Matthews-Wren House, designed for pharmacist Dr. George Edgar Matthews and built by contractor John W. Turner, was given a two-story Neo-classical portico with Ionic columns in about 1918. Several one-story Craftsman bungalows of the 1920s and a boxy foursquare house also stand in the district. The First Baptist Church, designed by Greensboro architect Harry Barton, has a basilica plan, a rose window and a Romanesque and Moorish design that is regarded as one of the most ambitious churches in Chatham County.
Significance in brief: The district is nominated under Criterion C for its collection of architecture spanning triple-A form, Neo-classical Revival, Craftsman bungalow and Romanesque/Moorish church design. It is also nominated under Criterion A for community planning and development, as the best-preserved part of one of the first residential neighborhoods developed east of the commercial district at the turn of the century.
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 00000824, listed July 20, 2000. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by N. Second Ave., E. Fourth St., N. Third Ave., and E. Third St., Siler City |
|---|---|
| County | Chatham County |
| Listed | July 20, 2000 |
| Reference number | 00000824 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | C. 1890-c. 1930 |
| Architect / builder | Harry Barton (architect, First Baptist Church); John W. Turner (builder, Matthews-Wren House) |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival; Romanesque; Bungalow/Craftsman |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Community Planning and Development |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Acreage | 4.1 |
| Coordinates | 35.72636, -79.46277 (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 00000824.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q18169370
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.