Josiah Smith Tennent House

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Josiah Smith Tennent House
Josiah-smith-tennent-house-sc1.jpg
Josiah Smith Tennent House
Josiah Smith Tennent House is located in South Carolina
Josiah Smith Tennent House
Location727 East Bay St.,
Charleston, South Carolina
Coordinates32°47′55″N 79°56′6″W / 32.79861°N 79.93500°W / 32.79861; -79.93500Coordinates: 32°47′55″N 79°56′6″W / 32.79861°N 79.93500°W / 32.79861; -79.93500
Area0.25 acres (0.10 ha)
Built1859
Architectural styleGreek Revival
NRHP reference No.79002377[1]

The Josiah Smith Tennent House is a historic house in Charleston, South Carolina.[2][3] The house was built by Josiah Smith Tennent in 1859 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.[1]

In 1993, the city gave the property known as the Josiah Smith Tennent House to nonprofit Elpis Inc. At the time, the house was little more than a shell, and the nonprofit intended to restore the building as a community center. A restoration followed, aided by the community development grants from the city, private donations estimated in the millions, and a $1.73 million mortgage that Elpis took out on the building in 2003. The restoration received a South Carolina Historic Preservation Award in 2004.[4]

Elpis outfitted part of the building as a dental clinic, helped established a day care center there, and housed other nonprofit groups in the building. In March 2008, it was announced that Charleston would spend $1.4 million to buy the house when a nonprofit that received more than $1 million in municipal grants toward renovating the building as a community center defaulted on its mortgage.[5]

The small front yard of the building became the Philip Simmons Children's Garden, honoring the master blacksmith.[6]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ Childs, Margaret; William D. Evans (July 16, 1979). "Josiah Smith Tennent House" (pdf). National Register of Historic Places - Nomination and Inventory. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  3. ^ "Josiah Smith Tennent House, Charleston County (729 E. Bay St., Charleston)". National Register Properties in South Carolina. South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  4. ^ "2004 South Carolina Historic Preservation Awards" (PDF). South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Retrieved Nov 22, 2012.
  5. ^ David Slade (March 5, 2008). "Charleston to buy mansion for $1.4M after group defaults". Charleston Post & Courier. Retrieved Nov 22, 2012.
  6. ^ Ron Menchaca (June 1, 2000). "East Side garden to honor blacksmith Philip Simmons". Charleston Post & Courier. Retrieved Nov 22, 2012.


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