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Aiken-Rhett House
The Governor William Aiken House
is well known as the Aiken-Rhett House as well, or even, the
Robinson-Aiken House that had been constructed in 1818 in
Charleston, South Carolina and the former house of William Aiken,
Jr. one of the governors of the state, and before him, his father,
William Aiken, Sr. owned the house since he was a rich railroad
company owner. The lovely house would be added to the National
Register of Historical Places in 1977, and it is run by the Historic
Charleston Foundation that also owns it, as a historic house museum.
It is the most intact townhouse complex in the city, and highlights
the antebellum lifestyle that had been prevalent in Charleston.
William, Jr. and his wife would enlarge the house during the 1830s
and 1850s, almost completely unchanged since 1858. William, Jr.
would become one of the richest people in the state during that
period, he and his wife would travel to Europe and come back loaded
down with extravagant antiquities, fine artworks and furnishings
that are still seen in the house today. It remained in the family
until 1975, and the foundation wouldn't own it until 1995. The house
contains 12 rooms, four on each floor, with the fences and piazzas
made of cypress and cedar so that they would last for ages, and
under the house there are large cellars and storerooms.
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