Bland, Joseph Franklin, House
Also known as: Franklin Bland House; The Castle
Why it's listed
Built in the early 1930s in Winston-Salem's Buena Vista neighborhood, the stone house known locally as "The Castle" follows the Chateauesque style, with fieldstone walls, recycled slate roofs, a circular stair tower and multiple gables. Joseph Franklin Bland planned the house and built much of it himself on a wooded lot above a ravine. Interior features include a 20 by 30 foot living room with hewn timbers salvaged from the Bohannon Grist Mill, wrought iron fittings made on site, and a cellar supported by railroad tracks. Bland was an organist at First Presbyterian and St. Paul's Episcopal churches and founded the Bland Piano Company around 1913, which remains in operation as the oldest music company in the city. The house is regarded as an unusual and well-executed example of its style, and the nomination treats it as important both for its design and for its link to Bland's musical career. Later owners have included a physician and a company president. Since 1971 the Nash family has added compatible structures using similar materials.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is a distinctive example of the Chateauesque style in Winston-Salem and that it incorporates many unusual engineering and design features, including railroad tracks in its support system, oil drums used as porthole windows, and steel pipe for the stair rail. It also argues that Bland, a local musician and founder of the Bland Piano Company, is significant to the community's history.
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 84002265, listed August 21, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 1809 Virginia Rd., Winston-Salem |
|---|---|
| County | Forsyth County |
| Listed | August 21, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84002265 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1936-37 |
| Architect / builder | Joseph Franklin Bland (builder, planned and largely constructed by owner) |
| Architectural style | Chateauesque |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Altered; the house has been extended with a guest house, catering kitchen, swimming pool, patio, gazebo and garage since 1971, while the original house is preserved. |
| Acreage | 2.2 |
| Coordinates | 36.10577, -80.27019 (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 84002265.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q19460570
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.