Lucama Municipal Historic District
Why it's listed
Lucama is a small railroad town set among farmland in southwestern Wilson County, and its historic district preserves most of the town's buildings from before 1930. The district takes in 65 parcels around Black Creek Road and Goldsboro, Main, and North Railroad streets. A small commercial area clusters where the railroad meets Main Street, with two-story frame stores from about 1890, frame saloons, brick stores with broad arched facades, and the board-and-batten depot of about 1905, which was moved and remodeled in 1974. Most of the district is residential, with one- and two-story frame houses built from 1887 into the 1920s in Victorian, Colonial Revival, and Bungalow styles. A frame Methodist church of about 1915 also stands in the district. The town was incorporated in 1889 along the Fayetteville Branch of the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad. Because the Depression slowed growth and little was built until the late 1940s, much of the early architecture remains, and about 80 percent of the structures contribute to the district's character.
Significance in brief: The district holds most of the town's pre-1930s building fabric, including largely unaltered commercial, residential and ecclesiastical architecture. Lucama was incorporated in 1889 along the Fayetteville Branch of the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad and grew from a settlement known as Lucas Crossroads. Little building took place from the Depression until the late 1940s, so much of the historic architecture survived.
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 86000772, listed February 13, 1986. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by US 301 and Railroad St., Main St., Black Creek Rd., and Goldsboro St., Lucama |
|---|---|
| County | Wilson County |
| Listed | February 13, 1986 |
| Reference number | 86000772 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architect / builder | Charles C. Benton (Joe Bass House, 1911-1912); Rev. Worley (Lousetta Newsome House, 1887) |
| Architectural style | Victorian, Colonial Revival, and Bungalow |
| Areas of significance | Industry, Agriculture, Commerce, Transportation, Exploration/Settlement, Architecture, Religion |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition rated excellent to fair; about 80% of the 53 structures contribute, and the former depot was moved and remodeled in 1974 as oil company offices. |
| Acreage | 30 |
| Coordinates | 35.64289, -78.01085 (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 86000772.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q22061030
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.