Jones, Dr. Beverly, House
Why it's listed
Crowning a bluff above Muddy Creek on the edge of the Moravian village of Bethania, this two-story brick house was built in 1846-1847 for Dr. Beverly Jones, a local physician. It is a Classical Revival plantation house, three bays wide, with a center-hall plan, original plasterwork, mantels and hardware, and a nearly complete group of outbuildings including a kitchen, smokehouse and three log slave houses. Dabney Cosby, a Virginia-born architect-builder who had worked under Thomas Jefferson at the University of Virginia, designed and built it. It is one of only two known documented surviving examples of his work in North Carolina, where most of his buildings have been destroyed. His letters to Jones about the project survive. The house was built on land owned by Jones's father-in-law, Abraham Conrad. Jones's descendants became physicians, a dentist, a lawyer and judge, and an editor. The house left the family in 1956.
Significance in brief: It is one of two known documented surviving examples in the state of the work of Virginia-born architect-builder Dabney Cosby. His 1846-1847 letters to Dr. Beverly Jones about building the house have been preserved. The house also has a nearly unaltered interior and a nearly complete set of contemporary outbuildings, and it is tied to the Jones family, a long line of Forsyth County professionals.
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 78001947, listed January 20, 1978. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | SR 1611, Bethania |
|---|---|
| County | Forsyth County |
| Listed | January 20, 1978 |
| Reference number | 78001947 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architect / builder | Dabney Cosby |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as in excellent condition, with an interior nearly unaltered; the form lists the property as private and occupied by its owners. |
| Acreage | 7 |
| Within district | Bethania Historic District (Boundary Increase) |
| Coordinates | 36.19361, -80.33644 (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 78001947.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q18559380
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.