Verdier, John Mark, House
National Register Listing
Street Address:
801 Bay St., Beaufort, SC (Beaufort County)
Alternate Name:
Lafayette Building
NRHP Nomination Form
Record Number:
S10817707009
Description and Narrative:
(Lafayette Building) The John Mark Verdier House has been a Beaufort landmark since the 1790s, when it was built by John Mark Verdier. Son of a French Huguenot emigrant, Verdier was a wealthy planter and merchant whose house typified Beaufort's gracious architectural style and was a focal point of the town, providing entertainment for Lafayette during his Southern visit and, in the 1860s, headquarters for Union troops. The heirs of the builder owned the house until 1940 when it was bought by a committee for the Preservation of the Lafayette building through public subscriptions. The house is a two-story frame building on an elevated stuccoed tabby basement. The roof is hipped. On the front façade is a double-tiered portico. The interior, which follows a modified Adam style, has the traditional center hall with drawing room on the right, dining room on the left, and two additional rooms behind. In the hall, an archway frames the staircase. On the landing is a handsome Palladian window. From the landing a divided stairway leads to the second floor where there is a large ballroom with a retiring room. Beaufort's first telephone was installed in the ballroom. Exceptionally fine, hand-carved mantels feature allegorical figures, ribbons, fruit, flowers, and sheaves of wheat. Listed in the National Register August 19, 1971.
Period of Significance:
1795;circa 1790;18th century
Level of Significance:
State
Area of Significance:
Architecture
National Register Determination:
listed
Date of Certification:
1971-08-19
Date of Boundary Increase:
No Boundary Increase
County:
Beaufort County;Beaufort City
