One of DC’s oldest homes hits the market

One of DC鈥檚 oldest homes hits the market

It is among the oldest homes in the District 鈥� built before even the White House was completed. And now the Southwest D.C. home is for sale for a cool $1.2 million.

The four townhomes built on the section of 4th Street SW were completed in 1794, shortly after D.C. was established but before the federal government moved there.

They were built by John Wheat and they subsequently become known as Wheat Row.

鈥淭here was a lot of speculation going on, a lot of land speculation. And people were buying properties, building them and then renting them out, much the way that we’d see modern speculation today,鈥� Eric Stewart, a realtor tasked with selling the piece of history, told 91欧美激情.

The home, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is four stories tall with high ceilings on each floor and has seven fireplaces, a remnant of when that was the only heating source available.

鈥淭here’s one in the basement level and then two on each floor after that, including inside the kitchen. So that would have been not only a place to heat, but also a place to eat,鈥� Stewart said, before an open house Tuesday dressed in 18th century period dress.

The realtor described the home as a 鈥渂attleship鈥� with top notch build quality that has stood the test of time.

The brick laying is a variety of a Flemish bond. Every other brick is placed with the butt of the brick facing outward, and the head of the brick inserted into the cinder block.

鈥淔ort McNair has been here for a long, long time,” Stewart said of the D.C. military base. “You look at the wall in front of Fort McNair, also built in the Flemish bond.”

The four-bedroom four-bathroom home is also four stories, meaning a lot of stairs, but luckily a functioning elevator was installed a few decades ago.

Stewart, who has been working as a realtor in the D.C. area for 39 years, said he has rarely seen a home this old go on the market in the heart of the District.

鈥淚n the countryside, if you head out toward Waterford, Virginia, or up toward Frederick, Maryland, you’ll find very pretty, stunning historical properties, still on large pieces of land,” Stewart said. “But down here, not very often.鈥�