Designed by the prominent Roanoke architectural firm of Eubank and Caldwell, the H. L. Lawson & Son Warehouse was built circa 1925, when businessmen in Roanoke, a major railroad hub, began exploring new opportunities arising from the advent of truck and automobile transport, especially in conjunction with rail service. Early on, Harry Leland Lawson, a local insurance executive, businessman, and vice president of the chamber of commerce, established a rail and truck enterprise. To accommodate both forms of transport architecturally, Lawson built a three-story warehouse into the side of a hill. The upper story opened at the building’s rear onto a Norfolk and Western track spur, where workers could unload and load rail cars. Meanwhile, trucks could directly access the lower first level, which fronts Campbell Avenue. Freight elevators allowed for easy movement of goods between upper and lower levels. Lawson sold the building in 1927 but bought it back in 1931, and at the time of its listing in the registers in 2008, it remained in the Lawson family. The H.L. Lawson & Son Warehouse contributes to the Belmont Historic District.
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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DHR has secured permanent legal protection for over 700 historic places - including 15,000 acres of battlefield lands
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