The Marquis de Lafayette Visited This Georgetown House. It Just Hit the Market for $16M.
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The Marquis de Lafayette Visited This Georgetown House. It Just Hit the Market for $16M.

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The Marquis de Lafayette Visited This Georgetown House. It Just Hit the Market for $16M.

One of D.C.’s oldest homes has hit the market for just shy of $16 million.

Prospect House, at 3508 Prospect St. NW in Georgetown, was built 230 years ago, playing host over its long lifespan to guests including Presidents George Washington and John Adams, the Marquis de Lafayette, the Shah of Iran and Robert Frost, according to Washington Fine Properties, which represents the seller. The red-brick home, which spans 9,000-plus square feet, was home to James Forrestal, the first U.S. secretary of defense, and served as the White House guest house during the Truman administration.

The eight-bedroom, six-bath home, nestled on a hill overlooking the Potomac River, features 12-foot ceilings, a formal entrance hall, double-parlor living room with twin fireplaces, a bay window overlooking the formal English gardens, banquet-sized dining room, gallery hall, eat-in kitchen, library and home office. Outside is a 41-foot swimming pool, three-car garage and an “octagonal watch tower where one of the earliest owners watched his merchant ships come into Georgetown Harbor,” per the listing.

The home is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. According to the Library of Congress, it has undergone renovation work multiple times since its initial construction, in 1850, 1861 and 1951. The current owner acquired Prospect House in 1981, according to public records.