Sword Gate House

Sword Gate House is located on Legare Street, which is named after another French Huguenot, Solomon Legare, who owned the property on which the house now stands. It appears that Legare built a house on lot that was replaced by the original portion of the ca. 1803 house. Who built it is unclear. According to the sources, it may have been Huguenots (French Protestants) James LaRoche and J. Lardent, or merchants Jacob Steinmetz and Paul Lorent. In 1818, the northern wing was built and the southern wing was built in 1849.

The gates were made by German immigrant Christopher Werner in 1838 and were originally intended to be installed at a police station called the Guard House where the Federal Post Office is now located. Information from the sources is contradictory, but either Werner made just one pair of gates that was never installed at the Guard House, or he made two pairs of gates by mistake and was stuck with one of them. This other pair is, apparently, installed at the main entrance of The Citadel military college. Nevertheless, around 1849 the new owner of the house, British Consul George Hopley, acquired and installed the gates that are located at the entrance to the property.

Between 1819 and 1848, the house operated as a private French boarding school for young women established by Madame Ann Talvande, the wife of Andrew Talvande, who bought the house in 1819. The Talvandes were French colonists from Santo Domingo, what is now the Dominican Republic. They fled Santo Domingo after slaves revolted in the early 1880s (this event was part of the Haitian Revolution).

One notable figure who was a student at the school was Mary Boykin Chestnut (1823-1886), the author of a book called A Diary From Dixie, which describes her experiences as an upper-class Southern woman during the Civil War (1861-1865). She also provides personal accounts of important events of the war including the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Chestnut wrote about Madama Ann Talvande as well.

Between 1952 and 1998, the Sword Gate Inn operated in one wing of the house. In 2002, the entire house became a private residence once again. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. Information about when Abraham Lincoln's granddaughter owned the house is not readily available.

"32 Legare Street." The Historical Marker Database. Accessed April 8, 2021. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=47750.

Canales, Katie et al. "Inside one of the oldest and most expensive mansions in Charleston, which just sold for $10 million and was once owned by Abraham Lincoln's granddaughter." Business Insider. July 28, 2020. https://www.businessinsider.com/sword-gate-house-16-million-charleston-mansion-haunted-abraham-lincoln-granddaughter-2018-10?op=1.

Dangremond, Sam. "One of Charleston's Most Historic Mansions Is on the Market." June 27, 2017. https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/real-estate/g10222494/sword-gate-house-charleston.

Fant, James W. "The Sword Gate House." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. December 18, 1970. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/997c64d5-bba4-46f4-9c9a-8e3fe06ed929.

"The Sword Gate House: Quintessential Charleston Living." Handsome Properties. November 14, 2016. https://www.handsomeproperties.com/blog/the-sword-gate-house-quintessential-charleston-living.

Whaley, Amelia. "32 Legare Street - The Sword Gate House." Charleston.com. August 8, 2017. https://charleston.com/charleston-insider/diary-of-a-charleston-tour-guide/32-legare-street-the-sword-gate-house.