Newport Historic District
Also known as: Reider's Ferry
The pin is a point inside the NPS boundary polygon, not a surveyed location.
Why it's listed
Newport is a river-town grid of about six by seven blocks in Perry County, Pennsylvania, with its commercial core at Center Square, where three-storey brick buildings occupy each corner. Its origins lie in a gristmill that David English built on Little Buffalo Creek around 1765, and the town grew as flour and feed were shipped by flatboat to Harrisburg and Baltimore. The Juniata Division of the Pennsylvania Canal reached it in 1830 and the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1849. The district is regarded as significant for its long-term commercial and industrial role, with tanneries, forges, garment factories and mills operating over more than a century. Most of the roughly 361 residences are two-storey I-houses built between 1865 and 1920, reflecting the town's late nineteenth-century prosperity. The 1871 Graham Hotel, the 1875 Butz Building and the 1876 Centennial Building anchor the square, and the Jones Warehouse on Front Street dates from about 1817.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the district is significant for its long-term role in regional and local commerce and industry, and for its largely intact collection of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century buildings, including many vernacular I-houses and commercial blocks around Center Square. Its development is tied to water power, river and canal transport, and the Pennsylvania Railroad.
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 99000321, listed March 12, 1999. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Fickes Ln., Oliver St., Front St., Little Buffalo Run, Bloomfield Av. and Sixth St., Newport and Oliver Township |
|---|---|
| County | Perry County |
| Listed | March 12, 1999 |
| Reference number | 99000321 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1817-1948 |
| Architect / builder | Hetrick, John L., Frank, J.C., Fleisher, G.& J.E. |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian: Italianate, Second Empire, Queen Anne; vernacular I-house |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Commerce, Industry |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The district includes many buildings in use, with the commercial cluster around Center Square described as virtually intact; the Third Street Bridge is closed to all but pedestrian traffic. |
| Acreage | 144 |
| Coordinates | 40.47768, -77.13242 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
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 99000321.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q15262180
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.