Jacobs, Benjamin, House
Why it's listed
Built about 1790 as a farm manor house in West Whiteland Township, Chester County, the Benjamin Jacobs House follows the two-thirds Georgian plan common in the Great Valley. Its core measures 35 by 32 feet, matching dimensions recorded in the 1798 Direct Tax, and a stone kitchen wing was later added to the east. Interior details include marble mantels, rosette corner blocks and paneled window reveals. Benjamin Jacobs, a lawyer, surveyor and associate judge of the Court of Common Pleas from 1790, lived here, and the farm was acquired by the Church Farm School in 1955. The house is regarded as an unusually intact example of an additive 18th-century farm dwelling, with its rural setting largely preserved and its use for farming unchanged for about two centuries.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is a representative example of the 18th-century farm manor houses of the Great Valley, built in the two-thirds Georgian plan and later enlarged with Federal details. Its dimensions correspond with the 1798 Direct Tax, and its setting and use as a farm dwelling are described as remarkably preserved. It is eligible under criterion C.
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 84003274, listed August 2, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 325 N. Ship Rd., West Whiteland |
|---|---|
| County | Chester County |
| Listed | August 2, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84003274 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1700-99 |
| Architectural style | Two thirds Georgian |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Residence-farm in use; condition and integrity rated above average |
| Acreage | 4.6 |
| Coordinates | 40.03993, -75.61797 (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 84003274.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4888869
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.