Cromwell's Run Rural Historic District (Boundary Increase)
The pin is a point inside the NPS boundary polygon, not a surveyed location.
Why it's listed
This 58-acre addition to Cromwell's Run Rural Historic District lies along U.S. Route 50 and Rectors Lane at the western edge of Atoka, Virginia, bounded by Goose Creek and the Loudoun County line. It contains five dwellings, a school, a run-in shed, a pool and pool house, and a garage, all built in the late twentieth century. The best known is the brick dwelling at Heron's Court Farm, designed in 1963 by architect J. Sanford Potter with English manor house influences. The land was added because it had been left out of the original district by oversight and shares its open pastures, stone walls, board fences and historic road. It also sits within the area of the June 1863 cavalry fighting at Goose Creek and the stone bridge, where the rise at Heron's Court Farm gave Union troops a strong vantage point. Although none of the buildings are of historic age, they fit the scale and character of the surroundings.
Significance in brief: The added land was left out of the original district by oversight. It is included for its link to the village of Atoka, for open rural land matching the original district, and for its association with the June 1863 Civil War fighting at Goose Creek and the stone bridge. Heron's Court Farm sits on a rise that had strategic value to Union forces.
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 08001051, listed November 12, 2008. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Bounded by Fauquier County line on the N., existing Cromwell's Run Rural Historic District on the E., Atoka |
|---|---|
| County | Fauquier County |
| Listed | November 12, 2008 |
| Reference number | 08001051 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | circa 1830 to 1958 |
| Architect / builder | J. Sanford Potter (architect of Heron's Court Farm dwelling, 1963) |
| Architectural style | Other: Split-level, Ranch, Neo-Colonial Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Military, Transportation |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | All ten resources are non-contributing because they are less than 50 years old; Heron's Court Farm is an active beef and horse farm, and about 30 acres of it in Fauquier County are under conservation easement. |
| Acreage | 57.7 |
| Within district | Cromwell's Run Rural Historic District |
| Coordinates | 38.98114, -77.81557 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
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 08001051.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q14712217
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.