Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 06/16/1993
NRHP Listing Date 08/12/1993
DHR's Virginia Board of Historic Resources easement
NRHP Reference Number 93000822
Named for the level loop of bottomland formed by nearby Hayes Creek, this genteel farmstead preserves a high-style brick dwelling built in 1819 for William Houston, a relative of the Texas pioneer and Rockbridge County native, Sam Houston. The house at Level Loop is noted for its fine regional Federal woodwork, particularly an exceptional carved mantel in what is now the dining room. The mantel, a regional interpretation of the Adam style, carved with almost bizarre gusto, is enriched with patera, thumb-nail gouge work, and fylfots (a German-style pinwheel motif). The restrained Federal character of the exterior, with its molded-brick cornice, a local idiom, illustrates the image of dignity favored by the Shenandoah Valley’s rural elite in the decades following the Revolution. Several 19th-century outbuildings remain on the Level Loop property, including a board-and-batten smokehouse with a small cupola.
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
Updated: June 21, 2022
