The Aiken-Rhett House is a beautiful time capsule built in 1820. The tour takes you back into time seeing what it was like living in Charleston, South Carolina during the era. The home was passed down through several individuals who created what we see today. The wealthy merchant, John Robinson, purchased the land and built the original house. Governor William Aiken purchased the house; therefore, passing it down to his son William Aiken Jr. After William Jr.'s death the house went to his daughter Harriet Lowndes Aiken and his son-in-law Major A.B. Rhett. They went on to raise their children in the house and made renovations to the property that are visible today.
The house is now owned by the Historical Charleston Foundation and located at 48 Elizabeth Street. They’ve adopted a conservation approach holding true to the style and original state of the house. They seek to preserve and protect the building and artifacts of historical significance.
Stair Hall
Verandah's of the Aiken-Rhett
Historic Details
All of the colored photographs pictured above were taken by me on our tour of the Aiken Rhett. The information I gathered was from an audio tour and, much to my surprise, the amazing documents compiled after 1933 by the Historic American Buildings Survey. I found the information through the Library of Congress.
The black & white photographs appear to be taken between 1977 - 79.
I cannot pinpoint the era in which the drawings were created but to my understanding it appears to be after William Aiken junior died and passed the home down to his daughter & son-in-law. The drawings show changes to the structure by transforming the size of the two drawing rooms and moving the main entrance to the side of Elizabeth street.
Check out my other post about The Charleston Foundations additional property, The Nathaniel Russell House.
Please let me know what you thought about this post? All feedback is always welcome & helpful.