Ellingson Farm
Why it's listed
Eight miles west of Clifton in Bosque County, Texas, near Rattlesnake Mountain, this farm holds two houses built by Norwegian settlers. The older is the Bernard Ellingson house, a one-and-a-half-story wood-frame dwelling from about 1893. It has an L-shaped plan, an intersecting-gable standing-seam metal roof, a shed-roof front porch with chamfered wood columns, one-over-one double-hung windows and shiplapped novelty siding. Nearby stands the Jacob Ellingson house, a one-room structure of quarried limestone laid with mud mortar, with a massive stone chimney on the north side and a single recessed door on the east front. It dates to about 1900 and is believed to be the last stone house erected by a Norwegian pioneer. The frame house is considered typical of farmhouses Norwegians built in the late nineteenth century. A small corrugated-tin outbuilding on the property does not contribute to its historic character. The property is currently unoccupied and used for storage.
Significance in brief: The farm includes what is believed to be the last stone house built by a Norwegian pioneer, erected about 1900 for Jacob Ellingson. The frame house, built about 1893 for his brother Bernard, is significant as a typical example of the frame farmhouses the Norwegians built in the late 19th century.
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 83003101, listed July 22, 1983. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | W of Clifton, Clifton |
|---|---|
| County | Bosque County |
| Listed | July 22, 1983 |
| Reference number | 83003101 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Areas of significance | European, Exploration/Settlement, Architecture |
| Level of significance | National |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed as unoccupied and used for storage; the two houses are described as in good condition. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 31.77865, -97.71153 (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.
Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.
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 83003101.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q110001663
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.