Duke, James Buchanan, House
Also known as: Lynnewood; White Oaks
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Why it's listed
Set on 4.148 landscaped acres in Charlotte's Myers Park, this Colonial Revival mansion developed in two stages. Zebulon Vance Taylor had a substantial house built in 1914. In 1919 tobacco and electric power magnate James Buchanan Duke bought it and hired local architect Charles C. Hook, who nearly tripled its size by adding a matching block and a connecting hyphen. The result is an H-shaped, weatherboarded house with slate roof and two-story Tuscan porticos. Duke named it Lynnewood, and it held 45 rooms and 12 baths. He lived there in his last years, during which he established the Duke Endowment, which supports Duke University, other colleges, hospitals and Methodist programs. Later owners included the Cannon family and Henry and Clayton Lineberger, both prominent in the textile industry. The Linebergers restored the house after fire, added landscaping and furnishings, and left it to the Duke Endowment. The property was listed for its architecture and its association with Duke.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents the house as a particularly good example of Colonial Revival architecture in North Carolina. It was also the residence of tobacco and power industrialist James B. Duke during the last years of his life, when he created the Duke Endowment. Later owners came from two prominent North Carolina textile families.
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 78001963, listed January 20, 1978. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 400 Hermitage Rd., Charlotte |
|---|---|
| County | Mecklenburg County |
| Listed | January 20, 1978 |
| Reference number | 78001963 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1914, 1919 |
| Architect / builder | Charles C. Hook |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| Areas of significance | Industry, Education, Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed in excellent condition and occupied as a private residence at the time of nomination; owned by the Duke Endowment. The attic was rebuilt after a fire in 1966, and the house was restored after a fire. |
| Acreage | 4.1 |
| Within district | Myers Park Historic District |
| Coordinates | 35.20142, -80.82732 (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 78001963.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q19461425
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.