Horner House and Barn
Why it's listed
Built of brick in 1819 on a farm in southern Cumberland Township, the Horner House is a two-and-a-half-story vernacular Federal dwelling with a five-bay south façade laid in Flemish bond and a center hall plan. Its interior has four fireplaces with individually designed Federal mantels. Alexander Horner completed it after acquiring the land in 1802. Beside it stands a bank barn finished in 1840 by the builder I. Lightner, whose inscription survives on a door brace. The barn has a cantilevered forebay, stone granaries and bent construction, and is regarded as the largest surviving mid-19th century barn in the township. A 1916 equipment barn and an early 19th-century summer kitchen complete the farmstead. The property is valued for its architecture and for the continuous family farming that has continued on the site.
Significance in brief: The house is regarded as an example of local Federal-period farmhouse architecture, with a center hall plan, brick construction and restrained interior details. The bank barn is described as the largest surviving mid-19th century barn in Cumberland Township and as a standard example of its type. The farmstead has remained in one family's ownership since 1802 and in agricultural use.
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 07000468, listed May 24, 2007. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 20 Horner Rd., Cumberland Township |
|---|---|
| County | Adams County |
| Listed | May 24, 2007 |
| Reference number | 07000468 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1819-1916 |
| Architect / builder | I. Lightner (builder of the 1840 barn) |
| Architectural style | Federal (vernacular); Pennsylvania bank barn |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Working farm in agricultural use; house and barn retain integrity, with a metal roof on the barn installed in the late 1990s. |
| Acreage | 1.5 |
| Coordinates | 39.72810, -77.24956 (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 07000468.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5904304
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.