List of the oldest buildings in North Carolina

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This article attempts to list the oldest extant buildings surviving in the state of North Carolina in the United States of America, including the oldest houses in North Carolina and any other surviving structures. Some dates are approximate and based upon dendochronology, architectural studies, and historical records. Sites on the list are generally from the First Period of American architecture or earlier. To be listed here a site must:

  • date from prior to 1776; or
  • be the oldest building in a county, large city, or oldest of its type (church, government building, etc.),
Building Image Location First Built Use Notes
Lane House Edenton 1718–19 House Oldest house in North Carolina identified by dendrochronology; One-and-a-half stories; located in the Edenton National Register Historic District; Owned by Steve and Linda Lane.[1]
Sloop Point Pender County 1726 House Resembles Caribbean architecture[2]
Newbold-White House Hertford 1730 House Oldest brick house in North Carolina.National Register of Historic Places, 1971.[3]
Myers-White House Hertford 1730 House National Register of Historic Places, 1971.[4]
St. Thomas Church Bath 1734 Religious Oldest surviving church building in North Carolina.
Orton Plantation Main House Winnabow 1735 House [2]
St. Paul's Church Edenton 1736 Church National Register of Historic Places, 1975.[5]
Mitchell-Anderson House Wilmington ca. 1740 House One of the oldest houses in Wilmington.[2]
Woodleys Manor Pasquotank County ca. 1740 House Oldest house in Pasquotank County, oldest side-hall plan in North Carolina, and earliest known Carolina plan.[6]
Palmer-Marsh House Bath 1744 House National Historic Landmark.
Milford Camden County 1746 House Oldest two-story brick house in North Carolina. National Register of Historic Places, 1972.[7]
Duke-Lawrence House Northampton County, North Carolina 1747 House One of NC's oldest colonial homes. The original western frame section was built about 1747, with the eastern brick section built between 1787 and 1796. National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
Old Brick House Pasquotank County ca. 1750 House National Register of Historic Places, 1972.[8]
Hammock House Beaufort ca. 1700–1750 House Purportedly oldest house in Beaufort, NC, also known as "Blackbeard's House," some sources claim it was built between 1700–1709, based upon a carved timber in the house.[9][10]
Dr. Robertson House Alamance County ca. 1750 House Alamance County Architectural Inventory, 2014.[11]
Hampton Family House
Hamptonville, North Carolina ca. 1757 House The oldest house in Yadkin County. Ref: Historical Architecture of Yadkin County North Carolina, copyright 1987; The Yadkin County Historical Society
Cupola House Edenton 1758 House National Register of Historic Places, 1970.[12]
The Owens House
Halifax 1760 House Entered on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971, this gambrel-roofed home of a merchant was built about 1760. It was named for George Owens and is the oldest structure of the Historic Halifax State Historic Site.[13]
Joel Lane House Raleigh ca. 1760–1770 House Oldest house in Raleigh
DuBoise-Boatwright House Wilmington 1765 House One of the oldest houses in Wilmington.[2]
Michael Braun House Granite Quarry 1766 House Also called Old Stone House. Oldest building in Rowan County.[14]
Chowan County Courthouse Edenton 1767 Courthouse Oldest courthouse in North Carolina. National Register of Historic Places, 1970.[15]
St. Philip's Church Brunswick Town 1768 Church
Single Brothers' House Winston-Salem 1769 House Part of Moravian settlement.
Burgwin-Wright House Wilmington 1770 House One of the oldest houses in Wilmington.[2]
Hugh Torrance House and Store Huntersville ca. 1779 Store and House The oldest standing store in North Carolina, and one of the oldest surviving structures in Mecklenburg County.
Patrick Gordon House New Bern 1771 House National Register, Oldest substantially unaltered house in New Bern.
House in the Horseshoe Carthage 1772 House Historic battle site between American Revolution loyalists and patriots.
Nash-Hooper House Hillsborough 1772 House National Historic Landmark, home to signatory of the Declaration of Independence.
Hezekiah Alexander House Charlotte 1774 House Oldest building in Charlotte. Part of the National Register of Historic Places
Robert Cleveland Log House Wilkesboro 1780 House Oldest house in Wilkes County.[16]
Alexander Long plantation house North of Spencer, North Carolina 1783 House Oldest inhabited home in Rowan County
Salem Tavern Winston-Salem 1784 Tavern The Tavern was the lodgings for George Washington for two nights during his Southern Tour in 1791.
Cool Spring Place Fayetteville 1788 Tavern Oldest building in Fayetteville.[17]
St. Philip's Church Winston-Salem 1861 Church Oldest African American Church building in North Carolina.[18]
Temple of Israel Wilmington 1876 Synagogue Oldest Jewish synagogue in North Carolina.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Discovery of the Oldest Dated House in North Carolina". North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources. January 16, 2013. Archived from the original on February 1, 2013. Retrieved February 7, 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d e Steelman, Ben (May 8, 2009). "What is the oldest house in Wilmington?". The Wilmington Star-News. Retrieved February 7, 2013.
  3. ^ North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
  4. ^ North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
  5. ^ North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
  6. ^ Kelly-Goss, Robert (November 10, 2012). "Historical treasure". The Daily Advance. Retrieved February 7, 2013.
  7. ^ North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
  8. ^ North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
  9. ^ Lynn Salsi, Frances Eubanks, Carteret County (Arcadia Publishing, 1999) pg. 21
  10. ^ Daniel W. Barefoot, Touring the Backroads of North Carolina's Lower Coast (John F. Blair, 1995) pg. 73
  11. ^ https://www.alamance-nc.com/planning/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2014/04/Architectural-Inventory.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  12. ^ North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
  13. ^ "Historic Sites: History". historicsites.nc.gov. Retrieved 2019-09-26.
  14. ^ "Old Stone House". Theo. Buerbaum's Salisbury. Rowan Public Library. Retrieved February 7, 2013.
  15. ^ North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
  16. ^ Robert Cleveland Log House
  17. ^ Survey and Planning Unit Staff (March 1972). "Cool Spring Place" (PDF). National Register of Historic Places – Nomination and Inventory. North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
  18. ^ St. Philips Moravian Church