Hartley House
Why it's listed
Built around 1909 or 1910, this one-and-a-half-story frame house at 315 West 17th Street sits in the middle of a residential block in Houston Heights, across from a school building. It has a hipped roof, a central dormer with shingled walls and three tracery windows, and an attached porch supported by Doric columns with square balusters. The front door has a simple transom and sidelights with tracery, and it is flanked by sets of three large windows with ornate tracery. Other features include clapboard walls, a composition roof, a corbeled interior brick chimney and brick piers under the house. The house was listed for its architecture and its local importance. It is described as one of the most charming and best-preserved houses in the neighborhood. A promotional book for the Heights from about 1912 names it as the home of J. W. Hartley and uses it as an example of a comfortable residence. No alterations are known, and it remains in residential use.
Significance in brief: The form describes it as one of the most charming and best-preserved houses in its neighborhood. It appears in a promotional book for the Heights from around 1912, where it is listed as the home of J. W. Hartley and presented as an example of a comfortable residence. Its area of significance is architecture, at the local level.
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 83004437, listed June 22, 1983. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 315 W. 17th St., Houston |
|---|---|
| County | Harris County |
| Listed | June 22, 1983 |
| Reference number | 83004437 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900-- |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Physical condition is listed as excellent, with no known alterations; the house is still used as a residence. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 29.80066, -95.40099 (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 83004437.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q110002174
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.