Goodman-LeGrand House
Why it's listed
Set on a nine-acre wooded tract at 624 North Broadway in Tyler, this wood frame house grew in three stages over about sixty-five years. Samuel Gallatin Smith built a four-room Greek Revival cottage called Bonnie Castle in 1859. Dr. Samuel Goodman, a physician and early investor in the Tyler Tap Railroad, bought it in 1866. His son William added a second story and double galleries in 1880, and commissioned a painted parlor ceiling by an itinerant artist that is described as one of the most sophisticated Victorian painted interiors in Texas. In 1924 Sallie Goodman LeGrand and her husband James rebuilt the house with semi-circular Roman Doric porticos, a porte-cochere and added rooms, removing much of the Victorian detail. The family hosted charity events and Tyler Rose Festival activities. Sallie LeGrand left the property to the City of Tyler in 1940, and it now serves as a museum and public park.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is a unique and architecturally ambitious classical Revival mansion that evolved from an antebellum cottage through a Victorian phase into its present form. It was the home of Dr. Samuel Goodman, a local physician and early railroad investor, and later became a center of Tyler's social and cultural life. It also holds one of the most sophisticated Victorian painted ceilings in Texas.
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 76002066, listed November 7, 1976. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 624 N. Broadway, Tyler |
|---|---|
| County | Smith County |
| Listed | November 7, 1976 |
| Reference number | 76002066 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Samuel Gallatin Smith |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival cottage evolved into a vernacular classical Revival mansion (with Georgian Revival elements) |
| Areas of significance | Art, Transportation, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | In good condition; owned by the City of Tyler since 1940 and open to the public seven days a week as a museum and park, with a portion of the second floor used as an apartment for a resident hostess. |
| Acreage | 9 |
| Coordinates | 32.35672, -95.30159 (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 76002066.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5583442
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.