" We're visiting middleburgh plantation with -- hill the son of the current owners. Architecture -- thing that's most important about this house is the fact that these original porches they were here -- the house was built. If so that makes them the oldest known in this country -- is that right. It is now that is the porch a feature that comes out of English architecture it's more Caribbean. You've seen that in Barbados where the families all came it was the staging area for the Carolinas actually Collins page and yes so that the house does have some sort of feeling of the plantation house I'm looking at the asymmetry of it though the chimney is not on -- why is that right that's because the original portion of the house where the two rooms down and the two rooms up on this end originally had two end chimneys. On this side of the chimney is the modern addition from seventeen so to the left of the chimney is an addition from when 1770. Pretty early modern piece of that glass in these windows appears the green tint what explains that. Those are original panes the oldest earliest eighteenth century glass in Charleston before they 1720 with and that bluish green tint beautiful. So this would be the original main room in the house yes originally that the ground force two rooms that they've when they're a little ones is the larger here. And that with a little one would be over here the withdrawing. Is this an original floor is an original floors very rare this was before they'd invented tongue Ingram and how to sixteen -- as villages but. But you butt jointed and nailed right through the face and went to England right after a fire at Hampton court palace toured the palace and the floors looked exactly like this and apparently George the first floors at the time this house had these -- first ballroom floors were exactly -- right. So this was a precious wood I mean it was an exotic and and very hard very good work. This doesn't look right though that this. Asymmetry that you've got here's the windows in the panels below them. Truth is that original it is original list was put in about the 1820s the family had made an. Lot of money that pointed to a high style was that townhouse in London. Out here however this was their rustic. Ancestral home pair Mosul to rest think so they've made this self consciously rustic it's it's the receiver I've ever -- it he added that kind of put everything together and -- them like an amateur community was done on purpose exactly and in the center of the panelists and the windows kind of all right in the middle where the panels are exactly. Well can we see -- little room. Yes. So how is this room used. We his instruments -- dining rooms it would have been used originally in the eighteenth century into the dining tables are pushed to the side of the wall when you're not actually eating sort you're having a dinner party you move everything into the middle yes well that's a beautiful built in corner -- this is original to the house these date from about 1740. They're only two others like it left they used to be very common. I can see the marks of the plane on the boards that I suppose the shelving is original it is original with the original grooves holding the plates upright. The original China as well decay. No it was given to us shortly after -- got the house it was presented to us to be put back in the words flow blue ware from between 183850s. From England from England. Cute so this is a room that evolved probably from a multi purpose room in the late sixteen -- to our family room in the eighteenth century July 19 century right this is a large family and all rooms probably multi purpose but if you're gonna die in this is -- room in which you do it. They added a third room yes it did and we -- it sure."

" You said all the rooms were. Multi purpose rooms right yes they were originally remember they had a very very large family the first several generations had over a dozen children generation to build this had fourteen -- expand household it. And this later became more specialized rooms became the state room guest bedroom. OK but -- dated it is when you didn't have fancy guests you had a dormitory basically basically they had over fifteen beds in the house in the seventies and you can inventories six rooms. 53 chairs on the front porch -- this is kind of fancy isn't it it is this this they although -- how plain they were in the other room. In this room they wanted to show off a little bit more so that got this. Old fashioned looking number 1820 this mantle was forty years that they can sell this was old fashioned right exactly not quite right for for 1780s mantle. But they're showing off for the latest thinking approach tomorrow and ends that high style. But the most expensive. Fireplace treatment you could Americans worried marble from Pennsylvania correct yeah this very nice. I've never seen a paint finish like this or that while this is paint this is a distressed wall finish your walls are original the other two have been recreated. And restored. And basically this is very popular about the same time -- were restoring and recovering underground ruins in Rome and they were fascinated by decay and ancient -- the beginning of archaeology right exactly so they were trying to reproduce some of that look on these walls. What this is is a very dark salmon base coat covered with over thirty -- up to thirty glaze coats to lighten the effect. There's some wild colors and and neon blues and greens and international oranges. That you can't -- the muted by the that the washes but it gives you some idea -- That those colors still shine through -- had a couple of VIPs that came here they did this was done either and and finished in time for president Monroe's visit making 1930 dinner for -- here thinking nineteen making 25. They also had marquee and Lafayette."