Realtor: Some Home! E.B. White’s Former Farmhouse, Inspiration for ‘Charlotte’s Web,’ Is for Sale

Monday, August 7, 2017

Some Home! E.B. White’s Former Farmhouse, Inspiration for ‘Charlotte’s Web,’ Is for Sale

E.B. White's Charlotte's Web house for sale

Fred Field/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images; Bettmann/Getty Images

The magical farmhouse and barn that inspired the iconic children’s book “Charlotte’s Web” is on the market. You can buy writer E.B. White’s former home, a serene 44-acre saltwater farm in Brooklin, Maine, for $3.7 million.

The picturesque property also contains a guesthouse, three ponds, and gorgeous gardens. Since news of White’s home was first reported by Yankee Magazine, the Internet has gone wild. After all, who knew that the barn from the beloved book was based on a real place?

“The barn is beautiful. It’s original. It has the swing,” says Martha Dischinger, real estate broker with Downeast Properties in Blue Hill, Maine. She notes that the owners will even show you where Charlotte spun her web, as well as the rope swing that’s featured in the story.

Barn and rope swing that inspired “Charlotte’s Web”

Mark Fleming, Yankee Magazine

The house is certainly located in a storybook setting. Built in the 1790s, the property includes 2,000 feet of shore frontage on Allen’s Cove. There’s a dock with multiple boat moorings, along with a little boathouse where White would do his writing.

Boathouse where White did his writing

Mark Fleming, Yankee Magazine

“The table is still there right by the window,” the agent notes. She says the whole property has been preserved perfectly. “It’s immaculate. It’s kept in beautiful condition,” Dischinger says. “Hopefully, it will be sold to someone who will carry on the legacy.”

The New Yorker essayist, children’s book author, and grammar guru bought the property in 1933, according to the L.A. Times, and lived there until his death in 1985.

Current owners Robert and Mary Gallant then purchased the place in the 1980s, as a second home, carefully holding on to White’s memorabilia. They also put their own stamp on the retreat; for example, they converted a woodshed into a sunporch.

Sunporch

Mark Fleming, Yankee Magazine

After more than three decades of ownership, they are now ready to turn the page on the home’s next chapter.

The residence includes six working fireplaces, five beds, three baths, two offices, and an updated kitchen. The getaway boasts water and mountain views. And we’re guessing, probably more than a few spiders.