City Directories and History: Both 82 and 82 ½ Cannon Street were built by the Cahills in the early 20th century on the site of a small, 19th century house. The two existing houses shared the same lot until well into the 20th century when their lot was finally split in half and the houses were sold as separate properties.
Other sources: Charleston Tax Payers of Charleston, SC in 1860-61, Dwelling Houses of Charleston by Alice R.H. Smith – 1917, Charleston 1861 Census Schedule, and a 1872 Bird’s Eye View of Charleston, S.C. The Hist. Charleston Foundation may also have additional data at: Past Perfect
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Benjamin Carpenter sold all of Lot 4 of the Daniel Cannon tract to James C. Carpenter in May 1835.[1]
James Carpenter died in 1845 and left the property to his wife, Maria Carpenter, for the rest of her life. Maria Carpenter died on August 14, 1877, and the property passed according to James Carpenter’s original estate plan to Huley Mulloy, Michael Mulloy, Catherine Norwood (nee Mulloy), John C. Stecker,[2] Amanda Burnes (nee Gullatt), James E. Gullatt, and Henry Gullat. The heirs joined in selling the property to Charles W. Seignious on March 26, 1878 for $925.[3]
Mattie E. Seignious, who apparently received the property from Charles’s estate, died in September 1904, and left the property to her sister, Emma Isadore Beckman, on the condition that Emma Beckman cancel an $800 debt owed. Emma Beckman agreed to cancel the debt and received the property. An advertisement appearing on April 10, 1906, announced that the property would be auctioned a week later.[4]
The notice of the sale specifically advertised the property not as a possible dwelling but instead as “an unusually fine building lot.” The notice did, however, recognize the existence of a “small Building” on the 50 by 175 foot property. The small building had been included in the 1902 Sanborn map; it was a small, two-story dwelling located immediately on but to the west of what would become the property line between 82 and 82 ½ Cannon Street.
The small house and building lot sold for $1050 on May 30, 1906 to Ellen M. Cahill.[5] It appears that Ms. Cahill razed the small house and built the first of the two new houses.
The new house was listed in a detailed real estate advertisement on September 2, 1909.[6] The description of the house—“A delightfully situated Modern Residence” with eight rooms and a stable — clearly refers to 82 and not 82 ½ Cannon Street. That same ad described the house as being less than five years old; apparently, the Cahills built 82 Cannon Street soon after having bought the undivided property in 1906.
At first, railroad agent Laurence J. Cahill[7] and his wife, Ellen Cahill, occupied 82 Cannon Street, but they appear to have built a second house on their lot. There was no mention of a second house in the 1909 listing. However, by the time of the federal census in April 1910, Laurence and Ellen had moved into 82 ½ Cannon Street with their three daughters, and the larger house at 82 Cannon Street was occupied by William and Geraldine Cahill. It therefore seems that the smaller house at 82 ½ Cannon Street was built between September 1909 and April 1910.
Mr. and Mrs. Laurence Cahill remained at 82 ½ Cannon Street until Mr. Cahill died in 1912, and his widow remained for three more years thereafter. It seems that both house were used at times as rental properties, and many different families were listed as occupants.
Mrs. Ellen Cahill sold the 50×175 foot lot with both buildings to bookkeeper Gertrude B. Touhey[8] on April 1, 1920.[9] It was Ms. Touhey who was responsible for dividing the property into two separate addresses when she sold the two dwellings separately for the first time. Ms. Touhey sold off the eastern half of the lot with 82 Cannon Street, a two-apartment unit, to Nicholas Margiotta on July 8, 1921.[10] She then sold just the western half with 82 ½ Cannon Street to Meta Kuck on January 2, 1922.[11] (Ms. Touhey specifically created a shared 1.5” strip between the two properties which continues to be shared.) Thereafter, the houses have had separate existences.
After buying the house in 1921 to Mr. Nicholas and Mrs. Mary Margiotta, the manager of the Singer Sewing Machine branch, the couple lived in the house at 82 Cannon Street throughout their ownership. In addition, they seem to have rented out at least part of their house to another family. Real estate listings consistently advertised a second floor apartment through the 1920s.
The next owners have all used the house as a rental property. [12] Mr. Margiotta sold 82 Cannon Street to realtor Edward Perry David Touhey[13] on May 18, 1929.[14] Mr. Touhey’s wife, Gertrude B. Touhey, sold the house to Julia Swint on May 11, 1943 for $4500.[15] Ms. Swint sold it to Walter L. Franks on April 26, 1949 in a transfer that referred to love and affection.[16]
Mr. Franks sold 82 Cannon Street to Amby Corp. for $6150 on July 18, 1950.[17] The corporation had been formed on May 27, 1947. During the 1960s, the house was specifically marketed as a rental for black residents. When the corporation liquidated, its property, including 82 Cannon Street, was transferred to a new partnership, also known as Amby[18] on February 1, 1973.[19]
James P. and Louise P. Diggs bought it from the partnership on March 7, 1975.[20] By 1978, the house was in very poor condition, and the couple was given 90 days to repair their house. In 1980, the case against the couple was dropped because they had done substantial repairs.[21]
[1] Deed book I10, page 313
[2] Mr. Stecker had died in 1846, leaving his sisters Serena Beckman and Ann Cobia to take his share in his place.
[3] Deed book K17, 433
[4] Charleston News & Courier, Apr. 10, 1906, at 5
[5] Deed book U24, page 489
[6] Charleston News & Courier, Sept. 2, 1909, at 5
[7] (b. abt. 1863)
[8] (b. abt. 1891)
[9] Deed book E30, page 70
[10] Deed book T30, page 117
[11] Deed book H29, page 307
[12] Renters included Navy yard boilermaker Mr. Edward and Mrs. Margaret Hendricks (1930), G.C. Collins (1931), sheet metal worker Charles and Dora Mahn (1933-40), Mrs. T.O. Hollard (1942), Jack Ginsburg (1946), Vinson Smalls (1954), Mrs. Ruth Smalls (1958), Annie Barnett (1968-69), and Jervey Barnett (1976).
[13] (b. Dec. 23, 1884)
[14] Deed book K34, page 212
[15] Deed book B44, page 317
[16] Deed book Q50, page 83
[17] Deed book G52, page 619
[18] The partners were Sylvia Yaschik, Bonnie Y. Friedman, Marsha Y. Kronik, and Anne Y. Silverman.
[19] Deed book B101, page 385
[20] Deed book G106, page 342
[21] “Property Repairs Ordered,” Evening Post, Nov. 8, 1980, at 12B
[Researched and written by Kevin Eberle, July 2016]
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
Stay Connected
Explore history, houses, and stories across S.C. Your membership provides you with updates on regional topics, information on historic research, preservation, and monthly feature articles. But remember R&R wants to hear from you and assist in preserving your own family genealogy and memorabilia.
Visit the Southern Queries – Forum to receive assistance in answering questions, discuss genealogy, and enjoy exploring preservation topics with other members. Also listed are several history and genealogical researchers for hire.
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