Wade, Alexander, House
National Historic Landmark

Wade, Alexander, House

Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia
Listed
October 14, 1966
Type
Building
Period
Early Republic
Ref No.
66000752

About this property

The Alexander Wade House is a historic house at 256 Prairie Street in Morgantown, West Virginia. Built in 1860, it was the home of educator Alexander Wade (1832-1904) from 1872 until his death. Wade is credited with developing a system of grade promotional exams and graduations that was widely adopted in the late 19th century. The house was declared a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1965. The Alexander Wade House is located south of downtown Morgantown in the city's Chancery Hill area, just east of the junction of Prairie Avenue and Wagner Road. It is a 2+1⁄2-story brick building, with a dormered mansard roof. Its main facade is three bays wide, with a single-story porch extending across the front, supported by paneled square columns. Windows are set in rectangular openings, with stone sills and lintels. The house was built in 1860 for Judge Edward Bunker. At that time, it had a more Greek Revival appearance, with a gabled roof; the mansard roof was added in 1911, when the building was divided into apartments. The house was purchased in 1872 by Alexander Wade, an educator native to Maryland. As the superintendent of Monongalia County schools, Wade experimented with a system of grading and promotional examinations that successfully normalized the progress of children through rural schools. Wade documented his ideas and presented them to the National Education Association in 1879, where they met with approval and were eventually widely adopted by school systems nationwide. Wade was also an early advocate favoring adoption of the metric system in the United States. List of National Historic Landmarks in West Virginia National Register of Historic Places listings in Monongalia County, West Virginia Wadestown, West Virginia, namesake of Thomas B. Wade (1787-1869), Alexander's first cousin, once removed.

Location

256 Prairie St.
Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia
39.62493, -79.95824

Categories

EDUCATION
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Chancery Hill Historic District (Boundary Increase)
Colonial
0 mi
Willey, Waitman T., House
Industrial
0.1 mi
Cox, Judge Frank, House
Industrial
0.2 mi
Chancery Hill Historic District
Colonial
0.2 mi
Downtown Morgantown Historic District
Listed
0.2 mi

Questions about this property

When was Wade, Alexander, House listed on the National Register?

Wade, Alexander, House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 14, 1966.

What type of historic resource is Wade, Alexander, House?

Wade, Alexander, House is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

Is Wade, Alexander, House a National Historic Landmark?

Yes. Wade, Alexander, House has been designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL), the highest level of federal recognition for historic properties in the United States.

What is the period of significance for Wade, Alexander, House?

The period of significance for Wade, Alexander, House is recorded as the early_republic era, specifically around 1860.

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