City Directories and History: This property is on the National Register, please see R&R’s site for the Aiken – Rhett home.
“This three story brick, 23-room mansion is known as the Aiken-Rhett House. lt was built c. 1817 by John Robinson, a merchant and real estate investor who built several houses on Judith Street. Originally a single house, it was purchased in 1827 by William Aiken, the Irish-born first president of the South Carolina Rail Road. He was killed in a riding accident in 1831, and the house was inherited by his son Gov. William Aiken. The latter, born in 1806 in Charleston, was a graduate of the South Carolina College. He owned a great deal of property including Jehossee lsland. He was Governor of South Carolina in 1844-46 and U.S. Congressman, 1851-57. Gov. Aiken enlarged the house several times and remodeled it in the Italianate style, based on Italianate villas which he observed on frequent trips to Europe. The wing extending along Elizabeth Street is said to have been designed by his cousin, Joseph Martin Aiken (see 20 Charlotte St.). The wing was used as an art gallery by the Governor, who filled it with European and American art. The marble surround of the main entrance is identical to that of the Old Merchant house in New York City, which came from the Sing Sing Prison quarry. The entrance hall has formal double stairs of marble, iron-railed and supported by Doric columns. During the Civil War, in 1863, a reception for Confederate President Jefferson Davis was held here, and from December 1863 to April 20, 1864, it was the headquarters of the Confederate commander, Gen. Pierre C.T. Beauregard. The house was inherited by Gov. Aiken’s Rhett descendants, and was donated to the Charleston Museum in 1975 by Mrs Lionel Rhett. The house is open to the public as a museum.” (Smith & Smith, Dwelling Houses , p.298 ; Stockton, DYKYC, July 17,1976.; Thomas, DYKYC, Sept. 18,19967; Allen, DYKYC, Sept. 20,1982; Rhett & Steel, p.94-95 ; Whitelaw & Levkoff, p.86 ; Stoney, This is Charleston , p.48 ) – CCPL
Other sources of interest: Charleston Tax Payers of Charleston, SC in 1860-61 and the Dwelling Houses of Charleston by Alice R.H. Smith – 1917 The HCF may also have additional data at: Past Perfect and further research can be uncovered at: Charleston 1861 Census Schedule or The Charleston City Guide of 1872
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