The house where heiress Evalyn Walsh McLean once lived with the 45.5-carat Hope Diamond is on the market in Georgetown’s west village for $2,250,000.
Like many of its owners, McLean encountered a spate of tragedy after coming into possession of the allegedly cursed diamond—including the deaths of her son, daughter, and husband (who was also declared insane before his demise). McLean bought the diamond from Cartier in Paris in 1910, and kept it until her own death in 1947. For the last five years of her life, she lived in what was then called the Friendship House. The mansion was later subdivided into three residences, and its former left wing comprises the home now for sale at 3306 R Street, NW.
According to Compass, which has the listing, the 1815 home includes marble floors from the original Old Ebbitt hotel, as well as boxwood trees in the backyard gifted by Jackie Kennedy. It has three bedrooms, three-and-a-half bathrooms, a heated outdoor pool, original oak floors, and a view of the National Cathedral. Presumably not included: any remaining bad juju from the Hope Diamond, now housed securely within the Smithsonian.
Marisa M. Kashino joined Washingtonian in 2009 and was a senior editor until 2022.
