Rooke, Robert, House
Why it's listed
Built in the 1840s in Downingtown, Chester County, Pennsylvania, the Rooke House is a stone residence made of a 2½ story fieldstone section and a three story fieldstone addition attached perpendicular to it. The addition was built soon after 1841 for Robert Rooke, a meat packer who had bought the property that year. Its west front is five bays wide with a centrally placed door, reflecting a central hallway plan. The house combines Georgian and early Victorian features, including six over six sash windows with shutters, a low pitched gable roof, a deep bracketed cornice, and eyebrow windows on the third story. The entire structure is stuccoed and whitewashed, and the door has a transom, sidelights, and an earred architrave. The house is valued for its design as an example of a large mid-19th century perpendicular addition built onto a smaller existing structure, a practice the nomination describes as localized. The original kitchen wing retains its form, and the house has changed little on the exterior apart from a modern roof and some replacement windows.
Significance in brief: The house is significant as an example of a large mid-19th century addition built perpendicular to an existing smaller structure, a practice the nomination describes as localized. It combines early Victorian and Georgian architectural features, including a center hall plan, end chimneys, six over six sash windows, a low pitched gable roof, deep bracketed cornice, and eyebrow windows. It is known primarily as the residence of Robert Rooke, a prosperous meat packer who purchased the property in 1841.
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 73001602, listed September 19, 1973. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | N of Downingtown on Horseshoe Trail at Fellowship Rd., West Vincent Township, Downingtown |
|---|---|
| County | Chester County |
| Listed | September 19, 1973 |
| Reference number | 73001602 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1841 |
| Architectural style | Combination of Georgian and early Victorian features |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The house has undergone few exterior alterations, apart from a modern shingle roof over both sections and replacement of original six over six sash windows in the older section with two over two sash windows. |
| Acreage | 54 |
| Within district | West Vincent Highlands Historic District |
| Coordinates | 40.12203, -75.66124 (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 73001602.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7349370
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.