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The Williams Mansion (formerly called the Calhoun Mansion) is a Victorian house at 16 Meeting St.,
The 24,000-square-foot house has thirty main rooms and many more smaller rooms. The main hall is 50 feet long and 14 feet wide. The house has a ballroom with a 45-foot-high ceiling.
When Williams died, in 1903, his house was inherited by his son-in-law, 
In 1932, the rear portion of the property, which faces on Church Street to the east, was subdivided, and the original stables and servants' quarters were converted into the Louis Gourd House.
Attorney Gedney Howe and his wife, Patricia, bought the house in 1976 and undertook a restoration. In 2000, Mr. Howe put the house up for sale, but it was still unsold by 2004, when he opted to advertise it for auction to occur on May 25, 2004. Before the auction, however, a private sale was arranged to lawyer and preservationist Howard H. Stahl.
It currently is used to house and display Mr. Stahl's extensive collection of artifacts from the
It also appears in ''Internet Movie Database
/ref> The interior was used for indoor shots of the Hamiltons' summer house in
Williams Mansion
- official site {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Mansion Houses in Charleston, South Carolina Houses completed in 1876 Calhoun family Museums in Charleston, South Carolina Historic house museums in South Carolina Gilded Age mansions
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
. The mansion is open for public tours.
History
George W. Williams bought the "Lowndes Lot" on Meeting Street and already had plans for a large house with attached conservatory, a hot house, extensive gardens, and an observatory atop the main house by 1873. The house was built in 1875 and 1876 for George W. Williams, a businessman, according to plans drawn by W.P. Russell by the Devereux Brothers as contractors. The cornerstone was laid April 26, 1875.
The 24,000-square-foot house has thirty main rooms and many more smaller rooms. The main hall is 50 feet long and 14 feet wide. The house has a ballroom with a 45-foot-high ceiling.
When Williams died, in 1903, his house was inherited by his son-in-law, Patrick Calhoun
Patrick Calhoun (March 21, 1856 – June 16, 1943) was the grandson of John C. Calhoun and Floride Calhoun, and the great-grandson of his namesake Patrick Calhoun. He is best known as a railroad baron of the late 19th century, and as the found ...
, a grandson of John C. Calhoun
John Caldwell Calhoun (; March 18, 1782March 31, 1850) was an American statesman and political theorist from South Carolina who held many important positions including being the seventh vice president of the United States from 1825 to 1832. He ...
. It was from his ownership that the house derived its common name, the Calhoun Mansion. It opened as a hotel starting in 1914.
In 1932, the rear portion of the property, which faces on Church Street to the east, was subdivided, and the original stables and servants' quarters were converted into the Louis Gourd House.
Attorney Gedney Howe and his wife, Patricia, bought the house in 1976 and undertook a restoration. In 2000, Mr. Howe put the house up for sale, but it was still unsold by 2004, when he opted to advertise it for auction to occur on May 25, 2004. Before the auction, however, a private sale was arranged to lawyer and preservationist Howard H. Stahl.
It currently is used to house and display Mr. Stahl's extensive collection of artifacts from the Gilded Age
In United States history, the Gilded Age was an era extending roughly from 1877 to 1900, which was sandwiched between the Reconstruction era and the Progressive Era. It was a time of rapid economic growth, especially in the Northern and Weste ...
.
In 2020, the home officially returned to its original name, the Williams Mansion. The owner stated he wished to avoid any implication that John C. Calhoun lived in the home. The change came shortly after the nearby John C. Calhoun Monument was removed from Marion Square due to the monument's connection to white supremacy.
In popular culture
The house and grounds have appeared inABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
's mini-series ''North and South'' as the Hazards' mansion.It also appears in ''
Gunfight at Branson Creek
A shootout, also called a firefight or gunfight, is a fight between armed combatants using firearms. The term can be used to describe any such fight, though it is typically used to describe those that do not involve military forces or only invo ...
'' movie./ref> The interior was used for indoor shots of the Hamiltons' summer house in
The Notebook
''The Notebook'' is a 2004 American romantic drama film directed by Nick Cassavetes, with a screenplay by Jeremy Leven and Jan Sardi, based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Nicholas Sparks. The film stars Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams as ...
.
References
External links
Williams Mansion
- official site {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Mansion Houses in Charleston, South Carolina Houses completed in 1876 Calhoun family Museums in Charleston, South Carolina Historic house museums in South Carolina Gilded Age mansions