Croco House
Also known as: Croco-Painter House
Why it's listed
Set on a rise above Salt Creek and visible from State Route 83 north of Holmesville, this red brick farmhouse was completed in 1873 for Peter Croco and his son Keiffer, both prominent stock raisers in the Killbuck Valley. The two-story house has a truncated hipped roof topped by a belvedere with ten semi-elliptical windows, a double-bracketed cornice with scrolled woodwork, limestone lintels, and wooden porches with scroll work and chamfered columns. Inside are eleven-foot ceilings and black walnut trim. Its Italianate styling closely follows plan book designs adapted to rural settings. The nomination notes that the belvedere appears unique among comparable Holmes County farmhouses of the period. It cost nearly $7,000 to build, reflecting the success of the family's stock breeding. Peter Croco was an early landholder and regional judge. The second floor was vandalized before the current owners began a careful rehabilitation, while the brickwork and first floor remained in good condition.
Significance in brief: It is significant as a late nineteenth century expression of Italianate architecture, closely following plan book designs for rural settings. It appears unique among identified resources of its era in Holmes County for its large belvedere. It also reflects the wealth of the Croco family's stock breeding, a prominent occupation among county farmers, and it is a visible local landmark.
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 85001343, listed June 20, 1985. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | OH 83, Holmesville |
|---|---|
| County | Holmes County |
| Listed | June 20, 1985 |
| Reference number | 85001343 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architect / builder | Builder/architect unknown; built by Peter and Keiffer Croco |
| Architectural style | Italianate |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as in fair condition and unaltered on its original site; the second floor was vandalized, and the interior was undergoing sympathetic rehabilitation at the time of the form. |
| Acreage | 4.2 |
| Coordinates | 40.63630, -81.92708 (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 85001343.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q29640499
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.