Rankin-Sherrill House
Why it's listed
Set in a grove of tall oak trees on N.C. 801 in Mt. Ulla, this two-story brick house was built in the mid-1850s for Dr. Samuel D. Rankin, a physician, planter and lay leader at Back Creek Presbyterian Church. He chaired the committee that built the church in 1856-1857, and the house is believed to date from the same period. The brick is laid in one-to-four bond under a low hipped roof, and the plan is a reverse L with a one-story kitchen ell. Inside, a center stair hall is flanked by rooms with simple mantels and plain surrounds topped with peaked lintels. After Rankin died in 1860, his family stayed on until 1886, when the property was sold to A. E. Sherrill. Only two families have owned it since. It is recognized as one of very few brick plantation houses in antebellum Rowan County, with largely intact vernacular Greek Revival woodwork.
Significance in brief: The house is one of the very few brick plantation seats built in antebellum Rowan County and a vernacular Greek Revival dwelling with intact, well-crafted woodwork. It is tied to Dr. Rankin, a physician, planter and chairman of the Back Creek Church building committee, and to the Sherrill family, who have owned it since 1886. The nomination links it to the planter class's emerging wealth and to Scotch-Irish Presbyterian traditions.
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 82003508, listed September 23, 1982. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | NC 801, Mt. Ulla |
|---|---|
| County | Rowan County |
| Listed | September 23, 1982 |
| Reference number | 82003508 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Vernacular Greek Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Agriculture, Health/Medicine, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Occupied as a private residence; the form notes alterations such as a porch of early twentieth-century date and a kitchen created in the 1950s by enclosing part of a rear porch. |
| Acreage | 7.3 |
| Coordinates | 35.65768, -80.72780 (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 82003508.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q19987738
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.