Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 09/12/2001
NRHP Listing Date 04/01/2002
DHR's Virginia Board of Historic Resources easement
NRHP Reference Number 02000317
Almshouse Farm at Machipongo is a complex of five contributing buildings dating from 1725 to the early 20th century. The 17-acre Northampton County site was used continuously as an almshouse farm between 1803 and 1952. The oldest structure, a brick farmhouse built around 1725 with a wood-frame section added later, predates the property’s use as a poorhouse. A simple vernacular Greek Revival two-story building (foreground above) was constructed about 1840 as the almshouse with eight rooms on the first floor and 13 “guestrooms” on the second floor. In 1910, a single-story frame building (background above) with 10 guestrooms was built to serve as a poorhouse for African Americans. There are also two contributing sheds on the Almshouse Farm at Machipongo property. While most almshouses were closed throughout the state by the 1920s, Northampton County’s remained open until 1952.
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: September 15, 2022
