Longwell, David, House
Also known as: Miale House
Why it's listed
Built in 1872 by the local builder and architect John Blythe, this two-story, five-bay brick house on West Main Street in Monongahela City shows the Italianate style in its ell plan, paired wooden brackets, and segmentally arched windows with wooden cornice moldings and oversized keystones. It was made for David Longwell, a riverboat captain and engineer, who contracted for the new house after railroad tracks were laid a few feet from his earlier home at the river end of the lot. Blythe designed many Italianate buildings in the town between 1864 and 1889, and this house is regarded as the most elegant and best preserved of his residences. It is one of nine ell-plan houses documented as his designs, and it keeps a steep metal bay roof, a round portal window in the gable, and a winding center-hall staircase that the others lack. The house faces Chess Park, and its porch was removed in later years. Its listing rests on its architecture and its link to Blythe's work.
Significance in brief: The house is significant for architecture as the work of John Blythe, a local builder and architect who introduced the Italianate style to the area and shaped the town's post-Civil War appearance. It is considered the most elegant and best-preserved of his houses, and it is a key example of the ell-plan house type he used for high-style residences.
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 93000718, listed August 2, 1993. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 711 W. Main St., Monongahela City |
|---|---|
| County | Washington County |
| Listed | August 2, 1993 |
| Reference number | 93000718 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1872 |
| Architect / builder | John Blythe (architect/builder) |
| Architectural style | Italianate |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.20601, -79.93087 (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 93000718.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5236756
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.