Felton Historic District
a.k.a. See Also: Felton Railroad Station
Roughly bounded by North, Walnut, Main, and Niles Sts., Felton, DEThe Felton Historic District is significant as an important late nineteenth century transportation and agricultural center that remains architecturally intact and reflects the various stages of development of the town. Typical of the towns that developed along the Delaware Railroad when it expanded south in 1856, Felton had its beginnings as an agricultural distribution point for the many farmers in the region. Before the advent of the railroad there was no settlement where the present town stands today, and thus the very existence of the town is linked to the arrival of the railroad. For this reason the Felton Historic District is being nominated to the National Register on the basis of Criterion A. The buildings in the district, many dating to the 1860s, include traditional Delaware vernacular, Greek Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne, Colonial Revival, and Bungalow styles. There are also some important commercial buildings.
The district comprises most of the late nineteenth-century town of Felton except for two blocks along the east side of the railroad. This area was the location of the many warehouses and support buildings for the railroad, together with some businesses such as a granary, N.P. Luff's store, a blacksmith's shop, W. Grier's Foundry and Machine Shop, and the J.H. Whitaker Packaging Company. The Presbyterian Church was also located in this area. Unfortunately, during recent years, these buildings became deteriorated and were torn down. Today, the modern firehouse, the post office, a laundromat, and a large parking lot are in this section. Consequently this area has been omitted from the district.
The rest of the nineteenth-century town, however, with its predominately residential section on the east side of the railroad tracks and its mainly commercial section on the west reflects an unusual architectural example of a railroad town. Even many of the barns, garages, and other out buildings that appear on the 1919 Sanborn Fire Map for the town remain.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.