Renowned Decoy Carver’s Shop, Residence Asking $3.6M, Has Deep-Rooted Sag Harbor History

203 Madison Street, Sag Harbor
Courtesy of The Corcoran Group

A Sag Harbor Village commercial storefront with a back residence is available for the first time this century. The property at 203 Madison Street, the home-base for Bob Hand, a renowned duck decoy carver, hit the market for $3.6 million with Corcoran agent Carol Sharks.

The 0.23-acre property, on the corner of Madison Street and Jermain Avenue, housed “Bob’s Waterfowl Carvings.” His works won awards at major decoy shows, was purchased by collectors throughout the world, and is even in permanent collections at natural history museums such as the World Wildlife Museum in Monument, Colorado. He was even featured in The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

Hand died in January from COVID-19. He was 77.

The property, which dates back 1854, went on the market on August 24 and provides a unique opportunity because it has a history of commercial and multi-unit residential use.

Sharks used old maps of Sag Harbor dating back from 1854 and newspaper articles from the 1800s to trace the origin of the property.

While the property is a part of a residential zoning area, where retail isn’t permitted, it is grandfathered in because it has been a retail store for over 100 years, Sharks says.

“I worked with the reference department at the John Jermain library to date the property,” she continued. Newspaper “articles from 1893 say the corner of Jermain Ave, previously called Parker Street, was home to a grocery store and a bakery. Based on historic maps, the storefront in its current location was erected sometime between 1902 and 1915.”

The corner remains a high-traffic spot, perfect for a shop. Behind the storefront is a ground floor residence and an apartment on the second level with a private entrance. The ground floor resident offers two bedrooms and one bathroom, while the apartment has one bedroom and one bathroom.

A large backyard offers access from Jermain Avenue or Madison Street. There is even room for a pool and/or private parking, according to the agent.

[Listing: 203 Madison Street, Sag Harbor |Broker: Carol Sharks, Corcoran] GMAP

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Courtesy of The Corcoran Group
Apartment entrance exteriorCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
The propertyCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
The backyardCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
Courtesy of The Corcoran Group
Courtesy of The Corcoran Group
Courtesy of The Corcoran Group
Courtesy of The Corcoran Group
Courtesy of The Corcoran Group
Courtesy of The Corcoran Group
The living roomCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
The kitchenCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
The bedroomCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
The bedroomCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
Apartment foyerCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
Apartment living roomCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
Apartment living roomCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
Apartment kitchenCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
Bedroom apartmentCourtesy of The Corcoran Group
Bedroom apartmentCourtesy of The Corcoran Group