An outstanding example of a Federal-style townhouse, the Carter-Gilmer House was built in 1820 by Dr. Charles Carter, a member of the House of Delegates, who maintained a medical office in a small brick building on the side yard. Five generations of the family lived at this Charlottesville residence, lineal descendants of Charles Carter and also Dr. George Gilmer of Williamsburg, a close friend of Thomas Jefferson. In 1955 the house passed out of the Gilmer family to Henderson Heyward, an architect who converted the building to apartments.

The buildings and districts listed under the Charlottesville Multiple Resource Area nomination represent a cross section of all the city’s historic periods, from the founding of Charlottesville in the 1760s through the advent of the automobile and the impact it had on the city’s expansion. Also included are buildings that have played an important part in the history of Charlottesville’s black community. The Carter-Gilmer House was listed in the registers under the Charlottesville MRA without a formal nomination document.