Thomasville’s majestic Lapham-Patterson House is on the verge of becoming the city’s latest victim of economic issues facing the nation.

THOMASVILLE — The Lapham-Patterson House, Thomasville’s only national historic landmark, may be closing its doors, officials said Friday.

The Times-Enterprise contacted some of the house’s supporters after receiving rants and phone calls indicating that the state historic site may cease operations by June 30.

“The Lapham-Patterson House, along with other historic sites and some parks, appear to be potentially slated to be closed on July 1,” John Wood, president of the Lapham-Patterson Society, a house support group, said Friday.

Wood said, “due to the current economic problems, the Department of Natural Resources, which is responsible for the parks and recreation and historic sites, took a severe budget cut on the last day of the legislature.”

“The budget cut was of the size that they just cannot tighten their belts and make it through, and need to reduce the number of operating facilities and costs,” he said.

Cheryl Walters, curator for 21 years, said the site has not received final word from the Georgia DNR Parks and Historic Sites Division in Atlanta.

The Times-Enterprise made phone calls to Thomasville Landmarks Friday afternoon for comment, but these were not returned by press time.

The house, “an outstanding example of Victorian architecture,” according to an event news release, was built for C.W. Lapham of Chicago in 1884-1885 at a cost of $4,500.

In 1905, it was sold to James G. Patterson, whose family occupied the home until 1970.

Following preservation efforts led by Thomasville Landmarks and the City of Thomasville, the Lapham-Patterson House was deeded to the State of Georgia in 1971, restored and opened to the public.

It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1975, an honor described by the National Park Service as a “nationally significant place” because it “possess exceptional value or quality in illustrating or interpreting the heritage of the United States,” according to the release.

Wood said a group of concerned citizens in Thomasville have been meeting for the past several months “to review possible options should the state find the need to close the house.”

The discussed options include modifying the operation in combination with other organizations to reduce cost to the state, but no final decisions have been made.

“We are continuing to meet and look for solutions,” he said. “We are hoping to find some.”

There is a free event planned for Sunday to highlight the Lapham-Patterson House, a collaborative effort of the Thomas County Historical Society, Landmarks and the house society.

The program includes an architecture lecture, video and stories about the house at the Thomas County Museum of History, and culminates with ice cream and society house tours at the site.

This event is part of National Historic Preservation Month, for which the theme is “This Place Matters.”

“This has been planned for a long time,” Wood said. “This would be a great chance for those who have never visited the house to come out. It may be their last chance; we hope it won’t be, but it might be.”

For information and time, call 226-7664 or e-mail history@rose.net.

Walters said she hopes the house does not close.

“Once something like this is closed, it is in great danger because there is no one or nothing to protect it,” she said. “This building embodies what makes Thomasville unique and I would hate to see it close.”