Originally called the James Thompson Inn after its builder, James Thompson, son of Middlefield's first settler Isaac Thompson, the Batavia House is Middlefield's oldest remaining structure. Built in 1818, the two-story wood-frame building operated continuously as an inn under Thompson until his death in 1877. It then became the private residence of his daughter Caroline until 1907, when it again became an inn and functioned as the Century Inn until 1951. About 1950, a one-story cement-block addition was built to support the heavy printing presses of the Shetler Printing Company, which occupied the building until 1983. Standing at the midpoint on the old turnpike linking Warren and Painesville, it served weary travelers with food and shelter and also hosted business meetings, township elections, and court proceedings. The original building helped shape Middlefield's commercial and social development. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Batavia House on July 16, 1987, the building honors Middlefield's original name, Batavia.