Name/Title
16 Meeting Street (George Walton Williams House a/k/a Williams Mansion f/k/a/Calhoun Mansion)Entry/Object ID
MEETING.016.1Scope and Content
Constructed ca. 1876; restored 1970s, 1980s. William P. Russell, architect. When this house was completed, an article in the News and Courier called it "the handsomest and most complete private residence in the South." Encompassing nearly 24,000 square feet of living space, the house was built by George Walton Williams, a local businessman who made a large fortune in the years before and during the Civil War. Williams, a native of Augusta, Georgia, began his Charleston business career in 1852, importing sugar and molasses from the West Indies and bagging from India. By the 1860s he had stores, warehouses, and industrial complexes in the peninsular city, as well as the Carolina Savings Bank at 1 Broad Street. With its 25 rooms, the Williams house is considered to be the largest single family residence in the city and includes elements of Italianate and Renaissance revival style. Its contrasting colors and textures of pressed brick, Corinthian-columned portico and side piazzas, as well as the period rope design around openings reflect the eclectic mix of national styles with homage to Charleston vernacular building traditions. The interior of this building boasts original walnut and oak woodwork , Minton encaustic tiles, and splendid gas chandeliers. For several generations the structure has been called the Calhoun Mansion in honor of one of its former owners, Patrick Calhoun, a grandson of John C. Calhoun, who married one of George Walton Williams's daughters. The house is privately owned but is open to the public as a museum.
File contains newspaper articles (including DYKYC 1969, undated); Calhoun Mansion [museum] brochure and leaflets entitled History, Architecture & Construction, Renovation, and Today (2000s); letter from Jonathan Poston to owner regarding work that had been completed (1997);Calhoun Mansion brochure (undated, home of Mr. and Mrs. Gedney Howe III.
Image #2 from Guide to Charleston Illustrated, 1875. (See MEETING.016.2b.)Collection
Historic Charleston Foundation Property RecordsAcquisition
Accession
MEETING.016.Source or Donor
16 Meeting Street (Calhoun Mansion)Acquisition Method
Collected by StaffLexicon
Search Terms
Meeting Street, Eighteenth-Century Expansion, Calhoun Mansion (Charleston, S.C.), Historic buildings--South Carolina--CharlestonArchive Details
Archive Size/Extent
1 File FolderArchive Notes
Finding Aids: Index to Property Files
Level of Description: FolderLocation
Location
Shelf
Property File ShelvesRoom
Margaretta P. Childs ArchivesBuilding
Missroon HouseCategory
PermanentDate
February 7, 2023Location
Container
PF Box 68Shelf
Prop File Shelves, Property File ShelvesRoom
Margaretta P. Childs ArchivesBuilding
Missroon HouseCategory
PermanentRelationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
Russell, William P.Related Entries
Notes
2009.010.1.23, MEETING.016.2, MEETING.016.3Related Publications
Notes
Buildings of Charleston (see Abstract), pg. 254-255Created By
admin@catalogit.appCreate Date
May 12, 2010Updated By
admin@catalogit.appUpdate Date
February 17, 2023