A Sag Harbor property located a little north of “East of Eden” has popped up for sale with a pricetag worth a few billion pearls. To be more precise, the coastal cottage — once owned by American literary legend John Steinbeck — is asking nearly $18 million asking price, as was first reported by the New York Times.
Steinbeck, the Nobel Prize winning author of classics such as “The Grapes of Wrath” and “Of Mice and Men,” owned the property along with his third wife Broadway stage manager Elaine Anderson Steinbeck from 1955 until his death in ’68. The writer was frequently seen gallivanting around the Sag Harbor area in his black rubber boots and would sometimes grab a bite to eat at the Cove Delicatessen on Main Street before sailing away on his 22-foot cabin boat, the “Fayre Eleyne.”
Though the couple split their time between their Hamptons property and their Upper East Side apartment, it’s clear the author had a soft spot for his vacation getaway. Steinbeck would famously write about his Sag Harbor retreat in his 1962 travelogue “Travels with Charley: In Search of America” and penned his final work, “The Winter of Our Discontent,” there. When Steinbeck passed away 53 years ago, the property was left to his widow. It’s currently being sold through a trust created by Elaine before her 2003 death.
Located on a tiny peninsula about a mile from the center of town, the former Steinbeck residence has been on and off the rental market for a few years but is just now making it housing market debut. Set on 1.8-acres of prime waterfront Long Island land, the estate features a two-bedroom, two-bathroom main house.
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Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty -
Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty -
Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty Stepping into the home — past the sign that reads “Eden” near the front door — the interiors feature quaint spaces such as a wainscoted living room that boasts bookcase-lined walls and a cathedral ceiling. A portrait of Charley (Steinbeck’s beloved adventurous standard poodle) still hangs above the fieldstone fireplace. And for breakfast with a view, the kitchen has a bijou eating area with a wall of windows that overlooks the waterfront. There’s even a “Library Loft” that Steinbeck built for his children and grandchildren to play in.
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Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty -
Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty -
Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty In addition to the main structure, there are two other small buildings on the acreage. There’s a tiny gazebo-like structure that Steinbeck used as a writing studio (dubbed the Joyous Garde after Sir Lancelot’s castle) and a small “Cozy Cottage” that could be used as a guesthouse. The cottage has enough room to house two people and offers a full bathroom as well as an outdoor shower. A 60-foot dock and an ovular swimming pool round out all the estate has to offer.
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Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty -
Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty -
Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty -
Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty -
Image Credit: Gavin Zeigler for Sotheby’s International Realty -
Image Credit: Sotheby's International Realty The listing is held by Doreen Atkins of Sotheby’s International Realty.