Burgaw Historic District
Why it's listed
Burgaw grew up beside the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad, which built a depot in the settlement around 1850. When Pender County was created in 1875, the railroad donated land for a town if Burgaw Depot became the county seat. W. H. James, a railroad civil engineer, divided the seventy-three-acre site into blocks and lots with wide streets laid out north-south and east-west, and the town was incorporated in 1879. The district preserves the original central business district of brick commercial buildings from the first third of the twentieth century, along with a range of houses from late Queen Anne cottages to Craftsman bungalows. The courthouse square, with its 1914 Confederate Monument and mature live oaks, forms the town's civic center. The 1934 Georgian Revival courthouse, a Public Works Administration project, anchors the square.
Significance in brief: The district is significant for its role in the community planning and development of a railroad-founded county seat, laid out by a railroad civil engineer after the railroad donated land. It is also significant for architecture, with commercial buildings from the first third of the twentieth century, varied houses and churches, and a 1934 courthouse that the nomination calls a focal point of the town.
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 99001047, listed August 27, 1999. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Cowan St., Fremont St., Dudley St., and Ashe St., Burgaw |
|---|---|
| County | Pender County |
| Listed | August 27, 1999 |
| Reference number | 99001047 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | C. 1850-1949 |
| Architect / builder | Deitrick, W. H. (architect - courthouse) |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Community Planning and Development |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Acreage | 57 |
| Coordinates | 34.55081, -77.92617 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
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 99001047.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q19600624
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.