This Week’s Find: The House that Moved to Mount Pleasant

• July 9, 2015

by Tianna Mañón

This Mount Pleasant home used to sit a few blocks to the east.

Not many homes in DC have been moved from one location to another, but this Mount Pleasant Victorian can claim that feat.

Located at 1886 Newton Street NW (map), the detached three-bedroom farmhouse has been completely renovated. The kitchen was updated in 2014 and all of the bathrooms have modern finishings and the master bathroom has dual vanities. Exposed beams, original banisters and the home’s tall ceilings are a reminder of the home’s history.

The kitchen of the home was recently renovated.

And it has quite a history.

In 1881, Edgar Van Horn, a navy clerk, purchased an empty lot that fronted Park Road, then Park Street, and built a two-story home and stable for a mere $2,700. At the time, Mount Pleasant was a place where businessmen and clerks built homes that would serve as an escape from the downtown DC summer, thanks to the abundance of trees and higher elevation.

When 16th Street was extended, the home was condemned and auctioned off to attorney William B. Matthews in 1903 for $100. Matthews then paid to have the entire house uprooted and moved several blocks to its current location.

One of the home’s many porches.

However, shortly into the move, inclement weather forced Matthews to abandon the home for five days along Sheridan Avenue (now Monroe Street NW). Once the home was successfully moved, Matthews built a two story addition and added a number of summer porches throughout the home.

While the property is no longer a vacation house, its porches and landscaped backyard with a patio and pergola allow homeowners to relax and enjoy the rare DC breeze.

The pergola in the home’s backyard.

Below are more photos and details about the property:

• Address: 1886 Newton Street NW (map)
• Price: $1,199,000
• Bedrooms: Three
• Bathrooms: 2.5
• Year Built: 1882, moved in 1903, renovated in 2014
• Listing Agents: Kelly Williams and Loic Pritchett, TTR Sotheby’s International Realty

Master bedroom

Photography by Marlon Crutchfield Photography.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/this_weeks_find_the_house_that_moved_in_mount_pleasant/10099