Was $4.52M Sag Harbor home used for rumrunning?
This five-bedroom Sag Harbor is set back on the property, which is next to the Sag Harbor Whaling and Historical Museum. Credit: Town & Country Real Estate
A Sag Harbor home listed for $4.52 million, built during the Prohibition Era of the 1920s, is believed to have been used for rumrunning.
The house, which sits on a .63-acre property, was originally owned by Fred W. Wilson, the owner of a bottling company, says listing agent Pamela Walsh of Town & Country Real Estate, who is representing the property with Judi Desiderio.
It is rumored that Wilson had the three-bay detached garage on the property built for the purpose of bootlegging, with alcohol being bottled and supplied to Southampton and East Hampton, Walsh says.
“The garage is huge,” Walsh says. “Back then, they didn’t build big garages, if at all, especially in Sag Harbor Village. So, the rumor was that it was where his stills were and his bottling.”
The garage now fits two cars, with the third bay currently being used as a cabana off the heated gunite pool.
The 3,000-square-foot house, a longtime rental, features five bedrooms and four bathrooms. It includes a living room with a fireplace, a formal dining room and a eat-in kitchen with white cabinetry, stainless steel appliances and a center island. The master suite features a bathroom with a claw foot tub and walk-in shower.
The house, which Walsh says was renovated in 2006, has a stucco exterior that helps “maintain its historical look,” she adds. It is set back on the property, which is next to the Sag Harbor Whaling and Historical Museum.
