Tankersley Tavern
Also known as: Old Bridge
Why it's listed
Tankersley Tavern is a nine-bay, single-pile frame building with an exposed basement and a two-level gallery on its south facade, set into a steep hillside along the Maury River near Lexington. Its oldest section dates to about 1835, when the family of Colonel John Jordan built it as a toll house at the north end of a bridge connecting the Valley Turnpike with Lexington. The toll keeper lived upstairs. By the 1870s the east room below served as a tavern and the west room as a ticket office for canal boats. The Tankersley family bought it in 1886 and gave it its name. After the county voted dry in 1900, the bar was left untouched for about four decades, while the building continued as a general store, post office and community gathering place. The site also includes a washhouse or kitchen, three sheds and the stone abutment of the former covered bridge, plus one non-contributing 1978 building.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents it as a rare surviving building tied to regional transportation from the mid-19th to the mid-20th century. It began as a toll house at the bridge into Lexington from the Valley Turnpike. It later became a tavern, canal ticket office, general store, post office and dwelling.
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 88002179, listed November 3, 1988. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | VA 631, Lexington |
|---|---|
| County | Rockbridge County |
| Listed | November 3, 1988 |
| Reference number | 88002179 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899, 1900- (specific date ca. 1835) |
| Architect / builder | John Jordan and Samuel F. Jordan |
| Areas of significance | Transportation |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Occupied as a private residence; described as in good condition and altered. |
| Acreage | 2 |
| Coordinates | 37.79380, -79.42834 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
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 88002179.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q16901213
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.