Old Norfolk City Hall
Also known as: U.S. Post Office and Courts Building
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Why it's listed
Completed in 1900 at 235 East Plume Street, this building served first as Norfolk's U.S. Post Office and federal courthouse. Baltimore architects Wyatt and Nolting designed it in 1898 as Norfolk grew into an international port. Its first story has rusticated stone, while the upper stories are yellow brick laid in Flemish bond with stone quoins. A pedimented central portico with four Ionic columns marks the entrance. Inside, the public halls keep marble facing, stone floors, vaulted ceilings, and a second-floor open court framed by an arcade of marble columns. The federal government transferred the building to the city in 1937, and it became city hall, with the first-floor post office space turned into treasurer's offices. It is considered significant as a rare example of Neo-Palladian Revival design in the United States and as evidence of the quality of federal construction of its era. The city planned to sell it for rehabilitation as a restaurant.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents it as an important and rare American example of the Neo-Palladian Revival, a style overshadowed at the time by Neoclassical Revival. It also illustrates the high architectural quality of federal buildings of the period and is the work of the Baltimore firm Wyatt and Nolting. The reviewer accepted it under Criterion C.
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 81000674, listed October 29, 1981. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 235 E. Plume St., Norfolk (Independent City) |
|---|---|
| County | Norfolk |
| Listed | October 29, 1981 |
| Reference number | 81000674 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900 |
| Architect / builder | Wyatt and Nolting |
| Architectural style | Neo-Palladian Revival |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Politics/Government, Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | No longer used as city hall; the city plans to sell it to a developer converting it into a restaurant. Condition is described as good, with an interior in an excellent state of preservation. |
| Acreage | 0.5 |
| Within district | Downtown Norfolk Financial Historic District |
| Coordinates | 36.84666, -76.29039 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
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 81000674.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q16896133
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.