Old Wilson Historic District
Also known as: See Also:Rountree, Moses, House; Davis-Whitehead-Harriss Hous
Why it's listed
Old Wilson Historic District covers a group of five adjoining neighborhoods in the northeastern part of Wilson, North Carolina: Maplewood, Woodard Circle, Whitehead Place, College Place and Rountree Place. While the city's wealthiest families settled along West Nash Street, this area housed merchants, clerks, shopkeepers and other middle-class and working people. Its buildings range from impressive Queen Anne houses on Woodard Circle to modest frame dwellings near Atlantic Christian College. The district includes a few mid-nineteenth-century Italianate and Gothic Revival houses, late Victorian cottages, turn-of-the-century Queen Anne residences, gable-front rental houses, Colonial Revival homes and one of the finest collections of bungalows in North Carolina. Four brick apartment buildings, brick churches and small neighborhood groceries also stand here. Houses were frame until the 1910s, when brick came into use. Mature hardwood street trees, mostly oaks, shade the flat terrain and tie the neighborhoods together. The area was listed for its architectural variety and its record of the city's residential growth.
Significance in brief: The district holds notable examples of nearly all major architectural styles from the 1850s to the 1930s, and it housed Wilson's merchants, clerks, shopkeepers and working people rather than its wealthiest families. It includes surviving Italianate and Gothic Revival houses, Victorian cottages, Queen Anne residences, Colonial Revival houses and one of the finest bungalow collections in North Carolina. A mature oak tree canopy unifies it.
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 84000736, listed December 20, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Nash, N. Cone, Gold and Railroad Sts. and Maplewood Cemetery, Wilson |
|---|---|
| County | Wilson County |
| Listed | December 20, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84000736 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architectural style | Italianate, Gothic Revival, Queen Anne, Colonial Revival, Georgian Revival and bungalow |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Industry, Commerce, Education, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Marked occupied and in good condition, with mixed private residential, religious and commercial use; the form lists the original site as unmoved. |
| Acreage | 164 |
| Coordinates | 35.73291, -77.91032 (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 84000736.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7085419
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.