Charleston home changes hands for first time in generations for $3.35M

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One of Charleston’s best-known private homes has new owners for the first time in generations.

58 Church Street, built around 1754, was represented by Middleton Rutledge of Daniel Ravenel Sotheby's International Realty in the $3.35 million sale. Georgia Nettles, also of Daniel Ravenel Sotheby's International Realty, brought the buyer to this transaction before the home was put on the market, according to a news release from the brokerage.

The Pre-Revolutionary War residence was made famous by “Mrs. Whaley's Garden,” a Loutrel Briggs-designed garden commissioned by Emily Whaley in the early 1940s and opened to the touring public for many years. Her best-selling memoir, Mrs. Whaley and Her Charleston Garden, is in its sixth printing. While owned by the Whaley family, Mrs. Whaley's Garden was reportedly the most visited private garden in America.

Listing agent Middleton Rutledge said it was the firm’s desire to respect the home’s legacy through the sales process, noting that it was once owned by Declaration of Independence Signer Thomas Heyward.

“This is an incredible piece of Charleston history, and representing the sale was a true privilege,” he said in the news release.

“We have an exceptional network of clients and a team of collaborative Realtors,” Chief Operating Officer Daniel Ravenel said of the in-house transaction. “This sale showcases what is possible when a client does their research and thoughtfully selects the right brokerage.”

Daniel Ravenel Sotheby’s International Realty has closed more than $3 billion in real estate sales in 40 years in the Lowcountry. Joining the Sotheby's International Realty brand in 2007, the company has taken its local market expertise and expanded into the international arena through a close partnership with the Sotheby's Auction House and a referral network across affiliate offices worldwide. As of late 2021, the brokerage supports more than 110 agents throughout its home area of Charleston, with a newly-expanded presence in Savannah, Hilton Head Island and Bluffton.