Cree, William, House
Why it's listed
Built of sandstone in the early 1790s on a hillside above Muddy Creek in Jefferson Township, Greene County, the Cree House is a two-story, three-bay house with a single room on each floor. William Cree, a Revolutionary War veteran, is credited with its construction after patenting the surrounding 280-acre farm in 1789. Its ashlar and rubble walls, rough-cut quoins, and segmentally arched windows and doors are described as unusually refined for its date and region. The house is regarded as one of the first stone houses in Greene County and one of very few eighteenth-century masonry buildings still standing there. In a county where most frontier houses were log, it marks the shift toward permanent stone construction. Its small floor plan, cooking fireplace, bedroom chimney cupboard, and winding corner stair with painted grain finish preserve features typical of houses of its era. The 1798 tax records describe a house of matching size, which supports its early date.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is an early, distinguished stone building with a simple one-room-per-floor plan, showing the transition from log houses to stone in Greene County. Its segmentally arched openings and masonry detailing are described as unusual for the region, and it is considered one of very few surviving eighteenth-century masonry buildings in the county.
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 01000678, listed July 15, 2002. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | W side of PA 1011, 0.1 mi. N of PA 21, Jefferson Township |
|---|---|
| County | Greene County |
| Listed | July 15, 2002 |
| Reference number | 01000678 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1790-1794 |
| Architectural style | Federal era stone cabin |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Occupied by the present owners; the house retains its stone shell, with a log addition attached about 1974. |
| Acreage | 1 |
| Coordinates | 39.89148, -80.04584 (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 01000678.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q8007279
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.