462 South Main Street

From the National Register nomination

Italianate/Classical Revival two-story house of painted stretcher-bond brick with occasional headers. The hip roof is capped by a belvedere with a bracketed cornice and segmental windows. The two-story monumental portico has fluted Ionic columns, a modillion cornice, lozenge details in the frieze, and turned balusters. The portico's limestone base continues as a terrace with a modern metal railing. The front entry has a transom and sidelights. Over the entry is a balcony supported by large sawn brackets. Of the two interior brick chimneys, the north one has a quadruple stack with a decorative cap. A large one-story sunroom extends from the south side elevation. It has fluted Ionic pilasters, transoms above the windows and paneled aprons below, and a modern roof balustrade. Other features include 6/6 windows, a slightly projecting brick frieze, and an early or original two-story rear wing formerly (in 1885) with additions or wings. In the late 20th century (perhaps about 1970) a large one-story wing was added to the north side. The Colonial Revival wing has a stretcher-bond brick veneer, a full basement level, a flat roof with cornice, and 6/6 windows. Although some accounts claim an antebellum date for this house and state that it was built for A. Moffett Newman Sr., the original architectural character of the house points to construction after the war. Historians Scott Suter and Cheryl Lyon suggest it was built by lawyer Warren S. Lurty about 1875, a date that is supported by the home's original Italianate features. Mr. and Mrs. R. Glenn Alexander acquired the property in 1917 and later added the monumental front portico and other features. In 1928 the Alexanders sold the house to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks (BPOE), and it remains in use as Harrisonburg's Elks Lodge. The property also appears under the address 482 S. Main. (Suter and Lyon, Images of America: Harrisonburg, 74; Noel, "Proposed-Court Square Historic District")