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The White House Architect Designed this $8.5 Million Estate

South Carolina’s Seabrook Plantation boasts a presidential pedigree

By Geoffrey Montes
Historic colonial-style mansion surrounded by trees and a spacious lawn under a partly cloudy sky.
The Seabrook Plantation in South Carolina. Photo: Josh Corrigan/Ellis Creek Photography

Elegant foyer with dual wooden staircases, arched entryway, polished wood floor, and large windows for natural light.
The foyer’s elegant double-staircase has been expertly maintained. Josh Corrigan/Ellis Creek Photography

Few architects have had as great an impact on American history as James Hoban, the classically trained Irishman who masterminded the White House—home to every president since John Adams. While Hoban’s design is only available to those boasting an electoral-college victory, now, an exquisitely preserved manor long attributed to the architect has hit the market in South Carolina for $8.5 million.

Known as Seabrook Plantation (after original owner William Seabrook), the 350-acre waterfront estate sits on Edisto Island, just south of Charleston, and is anchored by a Federal-style dwelling completed in 1810, nine years after the White House was built.

Elegant living room with light blue walls, classic furniture, chandelier, and vintage clock.
A view into the sitting room. Josh Corrigan/Ellis Creek Photography

“There are so many special parts of the property,” says broker Jane Smith, who represents the Low Country estate along with fellow Carriage Properties agent Melinda Laurens. The façade, for example, includes an impressive Palladian-style double portico, dormers, and ornate ironwork railing bearing Seabrook’s initials.

Elegant bedroom with a four-poster bed, wooden floor, cozy seating, and a fireplace, decorated in neutral tones.
The serene master bedroom boasts several large windows and a fireplace. Josh Corrigan/Ellis Creek Photography

Historic brick gazebo under Spanish moss-draped trees by a lake on a sunny day.
The charming brick teahouse is set at the edge of Steamboat Creek. Josh Corrigan/Ellis Creek Photography

With its floor plan unaltered, the 8,235-square-foot, five-bedroom home was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971, and its current owner has taken utmost care to maintain its antebellum appeal. Future proprietors will even find carefully preserved ceiling graffiti written by Union troops from when the house was used as their headquarters during the Civil War. (Modern renovations, however, were made to the bathrooms and kitchen.)

Elsewhere on the sprawling property are two guesthouses, a conservatory, a caretaker’s cottage, and a pair of docks. Most charming of all, perhaps, is the picturesque teahouse set on the banks of Steamboat Creek, overlooking the vast marshes and rivers flowing into the Atlantic. carriageprop.com