Robert William Roper House

Robert William Roper House
Robert William Roper House
Location 9 E. Battery St., Charleston, South Carolina
Coordinates 32°46′15″N 79°55′43″W / 32.77083°N 79.92861°WCoordinates: 32°46′15″N 79°55′43″W / 32.77083°N 79.92861°W
Built 1838
Architect possibly Edward B. White or Charles Friedrich Reichardt
Architectural style Greek Revival
Governing body Private
NRHP Reference # 73001692
Significant dates
Added to NRHP November 7, 1973[1]
Designated NHL November 7, 1973[2]

Robert William Roper House was built about 1838 in Charleston, South Carolina on land purchased by Robert W. Roper, a prominent cotton planter, in May 1838. The house is an outstanding example of early 19th Century Greek Revival architecture, built on a monumental scale. Although there are now two houses between the Roper House and White Point Garden to the south, at the time of its construction nothing stood between the house and the harbor beyond. "It is said that Mr. Roper intended his showcase home to be the first residence seen by visitors approaching Charleston from the sea."[3]

The authors of the nomination form for the National Register of Historic Places (1973) speculated that Edward B. White was the architect, although no evidence is given in support of this. Others, including Jonathan H. Poston[4] and the Classical American Homes Preservation Trust,[3] have suggested Charles Friedrich Reichardt, a highly regarded Prussian architect, who was working in Charleston at the time on the new Charleston Hotel [now demolished], built in the Greek Revival style.

The house was purchased in 1929 by Solomon Guggenheim of New York. It was acquired in 1968 by its present owner, Richard Jenrette. He restored it, completing in the early 1980s what Jonathan H. Poston calls "one of America's most notable restorations of a Greek Revival house."

The Roper House was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1973.[2][5]

The South Carolina Department of Archives and History summary is located here.[6]

References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2007-01-23.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Robert William Roper House". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Retrieved 2008-03-16.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Roper House: Charleston, South Carolina," Classical American Homes Preservation Trust. Retrieved 2012-04-09.
  4. ↑ Poston, Jonathan H. The Buildings of Charleston: A Guide to the City's Architecture. University of South Carolina Press, 1997, p. 219.
  5. ↑ Tray Stephenson and Bernard Kearse (April 20, 1973). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Robert William Roper House" (pdf). National Park Service. and Accompanying one photo, exterior, undated PDF (32 KB)
  6. ↑ "Robert William Roper House, Charleston County (9 E. Battery, Charleston)". National Register Properties in South Carolina listing. South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Retrieved 2008-03-16.

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