Marshlands, also known as the James Robert Verdier House, is a historic house at 501 Pinckney Street in

Beaufort, South Carolina Beaufort ( , a different pronunciation from that used by the city with the same name in North Carolina) is a city in and the county seat of Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1711, it is the second-oldest city in South ...

. Built about 1814, it is a high quality and well-preserved example of early Beaufort architecture, showing both Adamesque and

West Indian A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). For more than 100 years the words ''West Indian'' specifically described natives of the West Indies, but by 1661 Europeans had begun to use it ...

stylistic influences. It is also notable as a home of Dr. James Robert Verdier, who discovered a treatment for yellow fever. It was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1973 for its architectural significance. and

Description and history

Marshlands is located in Beaufort's historic downtown, on a parcel east of the junction of Pinckney and Federal Streets, overlooking the

Beaufort River The Beaufort River is a river in the South West of Western Australia. The river was named in 1835 by John Septimus Roe, Surveyor General of Western Australia, after a friend Rear Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort who was Hydrographer of the Navy fr ...

. It is a two-story wood-frame structure, set on a tall foundation of pink

tabby cement Tabby is a type of concrete made by burning oyster shells to create Lime (material), lime, then mixing it with water, sand, ash and broken oyster shells. Tabby was used by early Spanish Florida, Spanish settlers in present-day Florida, then by Br ...

with an arcade of arches. It is topped by a hip roof and its exterior is sheathed in wooden clapboards. A single-story porch extends around three sides of the house, supported by square columns. The main entrance is framed by sidelight windows and topped by a fanlight. The interior retains high quality original Adamesque woodwork. Marshlands

The house was built about 1814 for Dr. James Robert Verdier, and is noted among Beaufort's houses for its distinctive blend of Adam style elements with those from the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

, the latter including the arcaded basement and the single-story porch (when typical Beafort houses have two-story porches). Dr. Verdier was noted for discovering early treatments for

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...

; his house was used during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

as the headquarters for the United States Sanitary Commission. The house is privately owned, and is not open to the public.

References

External links

Marshlands, Beaufort County (501 Pinckney St., Beaufort)
at South Carolina Department of Archives and History * {{National Register of Historic Places in South Carolina National Historic Landmarks in South Carolina Houses in Beaufort, South Carolina Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in South Carolina Houses completed in 1814 Historic American Buildings Survey in South Carolina National Register of Historic Places in Beaufort County, South Carolina Historic district contributing properties in South Carolina

Description and history

See also

References

External links