Hollister, William, House
Why it's listed
Perched on a slight knoll at 613 Broad Street in New Bern, this two-and-a-half-story frame house was built in 1840 and 1841 for William Hollister, a Connecticut-born merchant and shipowner who arrived in the town in 1801. Hollister owned interests in fourteen ships and also invested in a salt works, a distillery, a store, banking and railroads. His meticulously kept account books record the purchase of materials, the laborers' wages and the progress of construction, and no architect appears to have been involved. The house follows the traditional New Bern side-hall plan and has Palladian attic windows and a captain's walk between its end chimneys. Inside, Federal woodwork and plaster mix with Greek Revival door and window trim, marble mantels and cast-plaster medallions. Considered probably the last full use of the Federal style in New Bern, the house has stayed in the Hollister family and survives virtually unaltered, with unusually complete documentation of how it was built.
Significance in brief: It is described as perhaps the last full application of the Federal style in New Bern and as one of the latest of the city's traditional side-hall plan dwellings. Its interior combines Federal design with mid-nineteenth century details such as marble mantels and plaster medallions. The house is almost unaltered, and Hollister's account books document its construction in unusual detail.
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 72000944, listed June 30, 1972. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 613 Broad St., New Bern |
|---|---|
| County | Craven County |
| Listed | June 30, 1972 |
| Reference number | 72000944 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 19th Century |
| Architect / builder | William Hollister (owner-builder); no architect or designer is identified in the account books |
| Architectural style | Federal (traditional New Bern side-hall plan) with Greek Revival details |
| Areas of significance | Commerce, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as in excellent condition, unaltered and on its original site; in use as a private residence, occupied by the fifth generation of the Hollister family at the time of nomination. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 35.10929, -77.04402 (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 72000944.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q18151831
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.