134-5874 Woodhurst Neighborhood Historic District

For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF

VLR Listing Date 12/08/2022

NRHP Listing Date 03/07/2023

NRHP Reference Number SG100008701

The Woodhurst Neighborhood Historic District, located in the Great Neck area of the City of Virginia Beach, is a mid-20th century residential suburban development comprised entirely of architect-designed, Contemporary-style, one-story, single-family dwellings. These house designs had their origins in the Usonian designs of Frank Lloyd Wright and reflected influence of California designers who were experimenting with new housing forms in late-1940s and 1950s. The wedge-shaped neighborhood is bordered by residential developments on the south (Sylvan Lake) and northeast (Baycliff and Alanton). A wooded buffer and swampy land around a branch of Mill Dam Creek edge the west side of the neighborhood. The houses in Woodhurst reflect Modernist influence in the use of low-sloped, front-facing gable roofs, a variety of sheathing materials, prominent interior brick chimneys, and integrated carports and garages. Some of the bricks used in the construction were salvaged from buildings demolished in Norfolk for the construction of the downtown tunnel. Many of the houses stand at an angle to the street to provide privacy, but also as a conscientious effort by the designers and developers to avoid the “regimented rank-and-file” appearance typical of other suburban neighborhoods.  The Woodhurst Neighborhood Historic District stands out as the best and most intact example of a mid-20th-century Contemporary-style residential development in what was then Princess Anne County, an area that experienced rapid development in the 1950s and 1960s.

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: March 10, 2023