Historic Charleston Foundation
The Aiken-Rhett house and its outbuildings are significant to the local community, the state and the nation as it tells the entire story of a household, white and black, free and enslaved, in the American south during the antebellum period.
Historic Charleston Foundation (HCF) acquired the Aiken-Rhett house in 1995 from the Charleston Museum. The motivation to purchase the property lay in preserving the rich historic fabric of the mansion house as well as preserving the ancillary structures including the kitchen house, carriage house, slave quarters, garden folly and privies. HCF recognized then the importance of opening up these structures to the public in order to present Charleston's African-American story during the antebellum period. Embracing the Charleston Museum's philosophy of conserving the house rather than restoring it, the Foundation reopened the entire site to the public on July 4, 1996. Today, more than 32,000 visitors tour the Aiken-Rhett House each year. Many of these visitors specifically visit the house because of the interpretation of slave life. It is one of two house museums on the Charleston peninsula where guests can view spaces where enslaved Africans lived and worked.
The Aiken-Rhett House is located at 48 Elizabeth Street, within the historic neighborhood of Mazyck-Wraggborough. The site includes a number of extant historic structures, including the main house and an intact complex of service buildings. The c. 1820 main house was constructed of brick with an exterior stucco finish. Originally, it was three stories, with four rooms on each level plus a central hall, and it featured an above-ground cellar. Wide piazzas on the south elevation face the street. A three-story wing was added in the 1830's and in 1857 an art gallery was added to house an extensive art collection. To the rear of the main house are a number of extant outbuildings that are equally important since they were the living and work spaces of Governor Aiken's enslaved African Americans, many of whom were skilled craftsmen. These structures include the kitchen and laundry building and across the yard, stables and carriage bays. The enslaved African Americans' quarters are located on the 2nd floors of both buildings. Future plans for the site include implementing a study of the work yard and the service buildings. While an Historic Structures Report (HSR) was completed for the main house in 2007, the consultants recommended that a separate HSR be completed for these nationally significant outbuildings. Through archeology of the work yard it was discovered that buildings that were previously considered to be a cow shed and a chicken coop were initially constructed as garden follies.
The successful audio tour begins in the cellar and then guides guests to the outbuildings thereby introducing the African American history first and then the tour leads into the main house. This approach offers an equal footing of all people's stories. Through special tours, curatorial tours and educational outreach to students at risk the Aiken-Rhett House serves as a laboratory of history.
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