At the AIA South Carolina annual awards banquet on September 26, 2019, Frederick + Frederick Architects received an AIA Historic Preservation Honor Award for the Rhodes House located at 314 Laurens Street in downtown Beaufort. The Honor Award is the highest honor that the American Institute of Architects South Carolina Chapter can bestow upon a South Carolina architectural firm for historic preservation. The award is given in recognition of design excellence.
The house was originally built in 1790 and was owned by the Rhodes family prior to the Civil War. Oral history recounts that Clara Barton stayed in the house when she came to Beaufort to provide relief after the 1893 hurricane. The primary structure is a classic I-House form, one room thick, raised foundations, tall ceilings, with double front porches on the southern elevation.
Cheryl Morgan, FAIA, jury chair said, This is historic preservation done right! The fine design of the original house shines through and nothing in the plan adjustments distracts. They only make it a much more livable house.
