Court Tennis Building
Historic Property
Alternate Name:
Court Tennis Building
Street Address:
149 Newberry St. SW, Aiken, SC (Aiken County)
Site Number:
03_0001
Control Number:
U/03/0001
Date Surveyed:
October 28 2009
Category:
Building
Construction Date:
1898 – 1904
Historic Use:
Recreation & Culture
Current Use:
Social
Historic Core Shape:
Rectangular
Architect or Builder:
Attributed to Stanford White
Number of Stories:
2
Construction Method:
masonry
Exterior Walls Materials:
Brick
Foundation Materials:
Brick
National Register Determination:
listed;
Signficant Architectural Features:
Flemish Bond for Exterior Walls; Engaged brick buttresses along long elevation with cast stone caps; 8/8 windows. Winter Colony Thematic Resource - Listed; Prev. SHPO No. 616
Alterations:
Metal Roof c. 2000; 1936 Court was Rebuilt; 1928 & 1928 Alterations by McGhee & McGhee and J.A. Holley to Court and Club House
Historical Information:
The Aiken Club, an exclusive men’s club, was incorporated in 1898 and constructed its court tennis building about 1902. Court tennis, played on an indoor court utilizing the walls and ceiling, is an elite sport originated in France over 700 years ago. The Court Tennis Building is one of only nine courts in the United States. Constructed ca. 1902 and remodeled ca. 1936, it is a two-story rectangular brick building with a hip-on-hip roof. The Newberry Street elevation (northwest elevation) features seven bays delineated by buttressed wall pilasters. All bays have double eight-over-eight windows in the upper portion. The southeast and southwest elevations feature one-story frame, shingled wings. The wing on the southeast connects the Court Tennis Building to the Aiken Club Room, a small one-story, frame, gable roofed cottage that was moved to its present location ca. 1928. The Aiken Club Room was originally part of the Aiken Club building which, along with stables, a squash court, servant’s quarters and the tennis court made up the Aiken Club complex. Early members of the Aiken Club included Thomas Hitchcock and William C. Whitney. Listed in the National Register November 27, 1984.
Source of Historical Information:
“Court Tennis Building” [On-Line]; available from http://www.nationalregister.sc.gov/aiken/S10817702021/index.html; Internet. Accessed April 22, 2010.
Survey:
City of Aiken Historic Resources Survey, Aiken County, South Carolina. May 2010
Quadrangle Name:
Aiken