Castlewood
Also known as: Poindexter House; The Old Parsonage
Why it's listed
Castlewood is a long, five-part frame house on a flat, open tract at the eastern edge of Chesterfield Court House, Virginia. A two-story center block is flanked by story-and-a-half wings joined by one-story hyphens. It was built in at least two stages during the 1810s and probably reached its present form by 1820. The land was granted to Henry Winfree in 1754 and sold in 1816 to Parke Poindexter, long-time clerk of the county court. In 1860 the house was conveyed to the Methodist Episcopal Church South, which used it as a residence for traveling ministers until 1872, giving it the name Old Parsonage. Its interiors are the main attraction. The north wing has naive gouge-work woodwork, while the south wing, decorated about 1835, has elaborate mantels, aedicule-framed doors and windows, and a plaster ceiling that closely resembles work at Norwood in Powhatan County. A pyramidal-roofed early outbuilding survives.
Significance in brief: The nomination calls it one of the county's finest and most puzzling early nineteenth-century houses. Its rooms show a wide range of provincial interior woodwork, from the naive gouge-work of the north wing to the elaborate decoration of the south wing, probably carried out in the 1830s by an unknown itinerant craftsman. The house also has a documented ownership history that includes Parke Poindexter, a county court clerk, and later use as a Methodist parsonage.
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 76002099, listed November 21, 1976. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | VA 10, Chesterfield |
|---|---|
| County | Chesterfield County |
| Listed | November 21, 1976 |
| Reference number | 76002099 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | National, State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Occupied private residence; the form notes a bathroom and kitchen were added since 1958, and the porch is a modern replacement. |
| Acreage | 5.8 |
| Coordinates | 37.37506, -77.50273 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary: it recognises significance and does not restrict what a private owner may do without federal money or permits. It unlocks the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit for income-producing buildings, state credits in many states, and Section 106 review when federal agencies are involved. See what listing means in practice.
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 76002099.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q14712139
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.