The Beloved Leery Family Home from Dawson’s Creek Hits the Market for Millions — and Fans Are Emotional
When I saw the listing for the house that served as the home of the Leery family in Dawson’s Creek, a swirl of nostalgia and curiosity washed over me. The 2,465-square-foot waterfront home in Wilmington, North Carolina — the one where Dawson Leery (played by James Van Der Beek) grew up — is now listed for sale at approximately $3.25 million.
I found myself imagining the many moments filmed on its wide porch, the breakfasts at the table, the deep water behind the property, the dock where so many conversations happened. That dock and the waterfront setting became visual shorthand for the show — late-’90s character drama, teenage friendship, small-town dreams, longing. The listing describes it as “an instantly recognizable symbol of coastal life and coming-of-age nostalgia.”
What adds so much texture to the story is the home’s own history. Built in 1880, the structure has remained in the same family — the Tremaines — for over a century, long before the show made it famous. The family shared that the house was made from hand-hewn timbers recovered from local shipwrecks and has stood resiliently through hurricanes and decades of change.
Reading about how the listing acknowledges this gives me a sense that the owners view the house not just as a filming location but as a living piece of heritage. “Our home has always remained in the family… our mom, Margaret, was here for all of the years of the filming,” the family wrote in a social-media caption announcing the sale. They called the house “the true star of the wildly popular show.”
As a fan of the show, I can’t help but feel a twinge of longing. Watching the listing photos, you realize how the house itself became as much a character as the people inside it. The porch became a quiet moment of reflection. The water behind it became an escape. The house’s façade conveyed both comfort and yearning. And now it’s for sale.
This feels especially poignant given how many of us watched Dawson’s Creek in adolescence — a time of navigating friendships, crushes, change, identity. The house anchored many of those scenes. And in real life we have an opportunity to own or at least admire that anchor, even if from afar.
It also prompts me to think about place and memory — how a location can shape how we remember a show, a moment, a year of life. For Wilmington, the show brought attention to its filming locations, its scenery, its local culture. For fans, this listing becomes more than real estate; it becomes a portal.
Of course, purchasing such a property comes with weight. It’s not just bricks and timber; it’s story, legacy and expectation. The listing doesn’t just describe bedrooms and baths — it frames the house as “the oldest home here on what we call ‘The Sound’ … a strong fortress … safe from hurricanes and whatever nature could throw at her for nearly 150 years.” That language helps paint what you’re buying: a piece of architecture, a piece of place, a piece of television history.
For those of us who watched Capeside, the fictional town in the show, the address may not matter as much as the emotional connection. We remember capes, creeks, teenage dilemmas, summer nights. And now the real address is this house in Wilmington. The next owner inherits that layered story.
So as I reflect on all this, I feel both excited and wistful. Excited that the house is acknowledged for its importance beyond the screen. Wistful that I’d never be able to just walk up the dock and sit on the porch where Dawson once sat. But grateful too, that moments like this remind us that art and place intertwine in unexpected ways. And sometimes we get to revisit that connection — all because a house was worth noticing.
