Coastal Carolina Group
Innovate Real Estate-Coastal Carolina Group
sellingcoastalcarolinas@gmail.com9 E Battery Charleston, SC 29401
8 Beds
7.5 Baths
11,355 SqFt
UPDATED:
Key Details
Property Type Single Family Home
Sub Type Single Family Detached
Listing Status Active
Purchase Type For Sale
Square Footage 11,355 sqft
Price per Sqft $1,276
Subdivision South Of Broad
MLS Listing ID 26022994
Bedrooms 8
Full Baths 7
Half Baths 1
HOA Y/N No
Year Built 1838
Lot Size 0.530 Acres
Acres 0.53
Property Sub-Type Single Family Detached
Property Description
The residence served as the town home of Martha Rutledge Laurens Roper, granddaughter of Founding Father John Rutledge, the governor of South Carolina during the American Revolution and a signer of the United States Constitution, and Robert William Roper from its completion in 1838 until Robert William Roper's death in 1845. Owned by other prominent Charleston families over the following decades, the house was acquired in 1929 by New York industrialist and philanthropist Solomon R. Guggenheim, founder of the Guggenheim Museum, who established it as the family's winter residence.
Perhaps most notably, it was purchased in 1968 by New York financier Richard H. Jenrette, who later credited the house with sparking his appreciation for historic preservation and his longstanding devotion to restoring some of America's great classical houses - a vision that ultimately led to the founding of the Classical American Homes Preservation Trust, now the Richard Hampton Jenrette Foundation.
A witness to defining moments in American history, including the opening shots of the Civil War across Charleston Harbor, the residence has been meticulously preserved and stewarded by preservation professionals and master craftspeople over the past several decades. Described by the Jenrette Foundation as "a remarkably intact document of the city's architectural, cultural, and social history," with significance rooted in the "authenticity of its historic fabric," the Roper House offers a rare privilege of stewarding one of Charleston's most significant historic residences.
Entering from East Battery, one first passes through an etched-glass vestibule, representing the dwelling's later Victorian-era ownership by the Siegling family, before arriving in a grand side-hall foyer, a defining characteristic of Charleston's finest early nineteenth-century residences. A spiral staircase, framed by classical niches, rises to the full height of the home and organizes the interior around two principal rooms on each floor, reflecting the traditional Charleston single house typology. The dwelling's most significant interior spaces are the second-floor double drawing rooms, connected by original pocket doors and opening onto the piazza through full-height triple-hung windows, a configuration intentionally designed for entertaining while enhancing natural light, ventilation, and views of Charleston Harbor. Black marble mantelpieces, original heart pine floors, high ceilings, and substantial classical-inspired moldings and millwork further define the principal floor, which once served as the backdrop for an overnight visit by His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, now King Charles III, in 1990.
Anterooms at either end of the principal drawing rooms historically served as music rooms, libraries, and private sitting rooms. Formal bedchambers above exhibit increasingly restrained ornamentation compared with the principal entertaining spaces below, while still conveying the classical dialogue of the building's overall design. A late-nineteenth-century rear addition sensitively expands the house's footprint to include modern amenities for twenty-first-century living, with southeastern views of the harbor and a distinctive side yard.
Location
State SC
County Charleston
Area 51 - Peninsula Charleston Inside Of Crosstown
Rooms
Primary Bedroom Level Upper
Master Bedroom Upper
Interior
Interior Features High Ceilings, Elevator, Formal Living, Entrance Foyer, Separate Dining
Flooring Carpet, Wood
Fireplaces Type Dining Room, Great Room, Living Room, Three +
Laundry Laundry Room
Exterior
Parking Features 2 Car Garage, Off Street
Garage Spaces 2.0
Fence Wrought Iron
Utilities Available Charleston Water Service, Dominion Energy
Total Parking Spaces 2
Building
Lot Description .5 - 1 Acre
Story 4
Sewer Public Sewer
Water Public
Architectural Style Charleston Single, Traditional
Level or Stories Multi-Story
Structure Type Brick
New Construction No
Schools
Elementary Schools Memminger
Middle Schools Simmons Pinckney
High Schools Burke
Others
Acceptable Financing Cash, Conventional
Listing Terms Cash, Conventional
Financing Cash,Conventional
Nearby School & Business
Coastal Carolina Group
Client Care Specialist