Fieldale Historic District
Also known as: Vdhr # 044-5173
Why it's listed
Fieldale is a company mill town in central Henry County, Virginia, built by Marshall Field & Company of Chicago. The company bought 1,841 acres in 1916-1917 and opened the town in 1919 to make quality towels for its department store. The plan had three parts: the brick mill complex, a business district with a bank, post office, grocery and theater, and a residential area to the west. Company-built one-story bungalows, mostly from stock plans, were rented to workers for 25 cents per room per week. The company also financed two schools and a community center. In 1941 the company sold the houses to its employees, and the mills became independent in 1953. They went bankrupt in 2003 and were bought in 2006 for manufacturing and distribution. The district contains hundreds of resources, including the mills, a former railroad depot, a Warren truss bridge and a downtown of two-story brick buildings. Later ranch houses and secondary buildings are non-contributing.
Significance in brief: The district is a largely intact example of a planned early twentieth-century textile company town, with its mill complex, business district, schools, community center and hundreds of company-built bungalows. The town was built to produce towels for Marshall Field's department store. The excerpt does not include the formal Statement of Significance, so the significance is inferred from the description.
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 08000072, listed February 22, 2008. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by 10th St., VA 682, Co. Rd. 609 & Chestnut St., Fieldale |
|---|---|
| County | Henry County |
| Listed | February 22, 2008 |
| Reference number | 08000072 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architect / builder | Marshall Field & Company (builder of the town and its company housing) |
| Architectural style | Bungalow/Craftsman, Commercial Style, Colonial Revival, Georgian Revival, Tudor Revival, Industrial, Warren truss bridge |
| Areas of significance | Commerce, Industry, Social History |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Mixed: the community center and many houses remain in use, while the Fieldale Elementary School, the Danville & Western depot and the Route 701 bridge are described as vacant or deteriorated. Two companies bought the vacant mill buildings in 2006 for manufacturing and distribution. |
| Acreage | 257.5 |
| Coordinates | 36.70376, -79.94113 (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 08000072.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q14712318
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.