The James Alexander House and adjacent springhouse are the core remnants of one of Augusta County’s most distinctive early vernacular farm complexes. In view of many thousands of travelers daily passing on Interstate 81, the buildings preserve a glimpse into the past, revealing the flow of central European-inspired architectural traditions to the area from Pennsylvania. The James Alexander House, built ca. 1827, integrates the Continental two-level bank form with the Georgian plan and detailing of eastern Virginia. The more purely regional springhouse employs similar two-level bank siting and limestone construction typical of Pennsylvania German architecture. The exterior fireplace on the springhouse, one of the few surviving examples of this utilitarian form, was used in such household and farm chores as butchering, laundering, soapmaking, and apple butter cooking.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
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Programs
DHR has secured permanent legal protection for over 700 historic places - including 15,000 acres of battlefield lands
DHR has erected 2,532 highway markers in every county and city across Virginia
DHR has registered more than 3,317 individual resources and 613 historic districts
DHR has engaged over 450 students in 3 highway marker contests
DHR has stimulated more than $4.2 billion dollars in private investments related to historic tax credit incentives, revitalizing communities of all sizes throughout Virginia