Why the Old Houses in Beaufort All Face the Water

How are you doing? I hope you are enjoying these first softer days of September.

The first time I walked down Bay Street in Beaufort, I stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. I came from Berlin, where old means stone, narrow streets, and everything built close together. Here the old houses sit up off the ground, wide open, with deep porches. And they all look the same direction. I thought it was a coincidence. It is not.

Once someone explained it to me, I never looked at these houses the same way again. So let me pass it on.

Beaufort is older than most people think

Beaufort was founded in 1711 and is the second oldest town in South Carolina. It is named after Henry Somerset, the second Duke of Beaufort, one of the Lords Proprietors of Carolina at the time.

The historic district covers about 304 acres and holds close to 500 historic structures. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1969 and named a National Historic Landmark in 1973. Many of the houses you see downtown were built before the Civil War and are still standing, partly because the town was evacuated before Union troops arrived, so the buildings were never burned.

That is a lot of history in a small walkable area. When I show someone around Beaufort, I always plan extra time, because nobody walks through it quickly.

The houses were built for the weather, not for the view

This is the part I love.

Long before air conditioning, people here had to solve the heat themselves. So they built the solution into the house.

The foundations are raised, usually brick or tabby. Tabby is an old local building material made from lime, oyster shells, sand, water, and ash. Raising the house lifts it above the damp ground and lets air move underneath.

The porches and piazzas face south, toward the Beaufort River, because that is where the cool breeze comes from. The view was a nice bonus, not the reason. The porches are deep for shade in the summer, the windows are large to pull the breeze through the rooms, and the roofs are low pitched, because a steep roof holds more heat.

And then there is the T-house. The long side of the T faces south, with covered porches on three sides, so air moves through the whole home. This floor plan is something you really only find in Beaufort. I find that remarkable. A town this size developed its own house shape, for its own climate.

As a German, I appreciate this kind of thinking. Nothing decorative without a reason. Every choice does a job.

What this means if you want to buy one

Here is the honest part, because I will not tell you what you want to hear.

Owning a home inside the historic district is wonderful, and it comes with rules. Most exterior changes need approval before the work starts. That approval is called a Certificate of Appropriateness, and it is reviewed by the City of Beaufort's Historic District Review Board. It applies to exterior renovations, additions, new construction, demolition, and signs.

The board meets on a regular monthly schedule, and a project usually moves through more than one review. So please plan that calendar time in from the beginning, and confirm the current meeting dates and application requirements directly with the City of Beaufort before you commit to a timeline. The inside of the house is a different story. The outside belongs to everyone who walks past it.

None of this should scare you off. It is the reason Beaufort still looks like Beaufort. But you want to know it before you write an offer, not after.

My advice is simple. Walk the district first. Go in the late afternoon, when the light is soft and the breeze comes off the river, and stand on one of those south facing porches. You will understand in two minutes why they built them that way.

Connect with me

If you enjoy these little pieces of Lowcountry history, tell me. And if you are thinking about the Lowcountry, or you know someone who is, reach out any time. I am happy to walk the district with you or answer a question by email, with no pressure and no pitch.

Loni 

This article was created with the help of AI and reviewed by Loni Lueke, The German Realtor.