Harper House
Why it's listed
Built around 1815 south of Archdale in Randolph County, this two-story weatherboarded farmhouse has a main block with a side-hall plan and a lower west wing. Around 1830 the original gable roof was replaced with a low hip roof, the wing was enlarged and a new porch was added. Inside, the house keeps carved mantels with slender Ionic columns, a stair with turned balusters and cable molding, and six-panel doors with wood graining and original hardware. Records leave uncertain whether it was built for Jeduthun Harper or his son Jesse, though nail dating and tax evidence lean toward Jesse. Jeduthun sat in the 1775 Hillsborough and 1776 Halifax Provincial Congresses and held several county offices. Jesse served as Civil Clerk of Court. The house was listed for its architecture and its link to this politically prominent family. A board-and-batten outbuilding, traditionally called a slave kitchen, survives on the 3.02-acre property.
Significance in brief: The house is noted for unusually elaborate vernacular interior woodwork that blends Georgian and Federal elements, with much original hardware and wood graining. It is also tied to the Harper family, whose members held political office in Randolph County and North Carolina. Jeduthun Harper served in the 1775 and 1776 Provincial Congresses.
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 79003347, listed July 22, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | SW of Archdale, Archdale |
|---|---|
| County | Randolph County |
| Listed | July 22, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79003347 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1815 |
| Architectural style | Federal period Piedmont North Carolina vernacular, with Georgian-Federal transitional interior woodwork |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Politics/Government, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Marked as private residence, unoccupied, with work in progress; condition listed as fair and altered. A restoration report dated December 1978 is cited. |
| Acreage | 3.2 |
| Coordinates | 35.86025, -80.01538 (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 79003347.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q19867735
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.