Low House
Why it's listed
Low House is a two-story Federal-style brick dwelling near Whitsett, in rural Guilford County. It was probably built in the 1820s for John B. Low, a farmer who owned considerable land and fourteen slaves. The house stayed in the Low family until 1935. The main block has a simple gable roof, brick laid in common bond, a stone rubble basement, five bays, and interior end chimneys rising above the roofline. Its side walls were originally windowless. A 1968-1969 renovation added one-story brick wings and a Williamsburg-style entrance frontispiece, which the nomination calls intrusive, but the main block remains largely intact. Inside, a center-hall plan holds a slender-balustered stair, flat-paneled wainscots, and an elaborate tripartite mantel with sunburst ornament. The interiors are described as apparently the finest of their period in Guilford County. The house was listed for its architecture. It was later threatened by a reservoir and slated to be moved.
Significance in brief: The house is a representative example of the Federal-style brick architecture built by prosperous Piedmont farmers in the early nineteenth century. Its interiors are described as apparently the finest of their period in Guilford County and remain largely intact. The nomination relies on this architectural merit, and the property had already been found eligible under criterion C.
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 78001957, listed March 8, 1978. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | S of Gibsonville, Whitsett |
|---|---|
| County | Guilford County |
| Listed | March 8, 1978 |
| Reference number | 78001957 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Rated good condition. The city of Burlington owns and rents the house, which was threatened by a proposed reservoir. A later addendum describes a plan to move the house and shift the added side wings to the rear. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 36.04996, -79.57006 (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 78001957.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q19986862
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.