A Glimpse Back at Historic Living

A Glimpse Back at Historic Living

November 2, 2021

by Vickie

Over 23 years, Southern Maryland – This is Living has taken our readers on detailed tours of many of the historical homes of our region. We’ve had the privilege of sharing stories about their owners, architecture and decor. In this issue, dedicated to the homes of our region, we are excited to bring you a glimpse back at some of the incredible homes previously featured. This photo roundup reflects many different time periods and architecture styles. Some have been restored and preserved to close to their original structures, others have been updated to modern standards and expanded. While most of the houses are privately owned and can be admired from a far, others are open to the public and meant to be admired in person. The good news is there are still so many more for us to feature in our future issues . . . so be on the lookout. See our feature on Sarum in “Things that Manor”. That’s considered to be the oldest home in Charles County.

Some of the photos and information provided here have been updated from when first published, but most of them are pulled directly from our archived articles. The issue dates are at the end of each listing. Homes noted with an asterisk are open to the public.

CALVERT COUNTY

: Cedar Hill, Barstow – Built between 1690 and 1730, it’s the only known example of cruciform architecture still standing in Maryland. Originally called Mile’s end, Cedar Hill was once the plantation of John Bigger. Bigger’s son, Colonel John Bigger, renamed the plantation to Bigger. It was sometime during the 19th century that Cedar Hill received its current name. Summer 1999

: Linden,* Prince Frederick – Henry Williams purchased the 250-acre parcel from Thomas Moore in 1868 and began building on a land originally patented as “Williams Hardship.” The third owner, John B. Gray, made the first addition to the home in 1907. He also planted six Linden trees, giving the property its name. The house was rescued from bad disrepair when Calvert County purchased it from St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in 1997. After much work by many community volunteers, organizations and the help of several grants, the house was restored. It’s currently leased by Calvert County Historical Society and open to the public on a limited schedule. Spring 1999; Summer 2004

: Maidstone, Owings – One of the earliest frame houses surviving in Southern Maryland. A dendrochronology study revealed the oldest part of the house was built in 1751 by Lewis Levin, an Anne Arundel farmer. Summer 2002

: Point Patience, Solomons – Built in early 1800s on a point of land jutting into the Patuxent River on the Solomons Annex, it’s currently owned by the U.S. Navy. It has been a private residence, hotel and now serves as the admiral’s residence. Fall 2010

: Old Sprout Farm, St. Leonard –On a high cliff overlooking St. Leonard Creek, the land was granted to Thomas Hatton, Secretary of the Province of Maryland in 1636. In the early 18th century, John Parran purchased the property and built the farm’s first structure. Winter 1999

: Rousby Hall, Lusby – It was the home of the Honorable John Rousby until his early death at the age of 23 in 1750. His tomb, in an excellent state of preservation, is a short distance from the rear of the house. The original home was believed to be destroyed during the Revolutionary War and rebuilt in the early 1780s. Expanded and restored in 1992, Rousby Hall now operates as short-term rental through Airbnb. Spring 2001

: Trusswell, St. Leonard – James Sewell Thomas purchased the house and 30 acres from the Denton family, expanding it for his family in the late 1870s. No longer a tobacco farm, it is now a home to be enjoyed by family and friends. Spring 2003

CHARLES COUNTY

: Boarmans Manor, Bryantown – Located on land that was once part of a 3,333-acre proprietary manorial grant awarded to Major William Boarman in 1676. The current house is believed to have been built by Benjamin Marcellus Edelen, Jr. (then called Smith house) in 1913 on the site of an earlier Boarman house on land inherited by his wife, Mary Boarman. Summer 2001

: Chandlers Hope, Port Tobacco – It dates back to 1639 when a portion of the land overlooking Port Tobacco Creek was patented by William Chandler in 1674. The earliest part of the structure was built by Job Chandler. The first Women’s Religious Order in the United States was founded at Chandlers Hope in 1790 by Reverend Charles Neale, who grew up at Chandlers Hope. Nuns lived and worshipped at Chandlers Hope before the Carmelite monastery was established. Spring 2016

: Chilham, La Plata – The land on which the house sits was originally part of the Hermitage holdings. Judge Walter Digges and the Mitchell family purchased 10 acres in 1910. Judge Diggs took six acres and began construction in 1914. It was completed in 1915 and was the first house in La Plata with running water, electricity and gas lights. Summer 2006

: Chimney House, Port Tobacco – Built by Thomas Ridgate in 1780. Two massive chimneys with a connecting pent give the house its name. It was used as a temporary courthouse in 1892 while also serving as a boarding house and tavern. Winter 2000

: Ellerslie, Port Tobacco – The 1835 home of patriot politician Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, who served as the first president of the Maryland State Senate, a member of Continental Congress and a signer of the U.S. Constitution. Spring 2019

: Eutaw Forrest, Waldorf – Originally known as Eutah Forrest, the federal style house was built in 1850 by Confederate Capt. William Fendley Dement. Summer 1999

: Habredeventure* (now known as the Thomas Stone National Historic Site,) Port Tobacco Thomas Stone, one of the four Maryland signers of the Declaration of Independence, built the house for his family in 1770. Designated as a historical site in 1978 and purchased by the National Park Service in 1981, restoration soon began on the site that opened to the public in 1997. Fall 2003

: Linden, La Plata – Overlooking Port Tobacco Valley, it dates back to 1666 when the land where the house now stands on was known as Durham and patented to Walter Beane. The two-story, two-room home was built in 1783 by Henry Barnes. It was enlarged in the 1800s by Walter Mitchell, who added a 2½-story addition. Winter 1999

: The Manor of Trumans Place, Hughesville – Originally named Truman’s Place, it was granted to Nathaniel Truman in 1665. The property was sold to Richard Gardiner in 1759, who built the property’s original brick structure sometime between 1759-1782. The property stayed in the Gardiner family for almost a century. Manor was added to the name in the 1960s. Spring 2000

: Mount Aventine*, Indian Head – The home overlooks the Potomac River at Chapman State Park. Built in 1840, the home was once owned by the Chapman family that ran one of the larger fisheries on the East Coast. Now open to the public May through October. Spring 2019

: Maxwell Hall,* Hughesville – Built in 1768 by George Maxwell, a Benedict merchant, on an elevated site overlooking the Patuxent River and Swanson Creek. A great example of a gambrel-roof frame house. Edwin and Marion Swann purchased the house in 1980 and 27 years later, after much restoration, placed it in public ownership. Charles County purchased the house on 22 acres, incorporating it with the county’s 670-acre hiking and equestrian destination, Maxwell Hall Park. Spring 2014

: Mount Republican, Newburg – It was built in 1790 by Harry Yates. Beautiful brick work, tall double chimneys and a broad sloping view of the Potomac River distinguish it as one of early Maryland’s finer homes. Spring 1999

: Mt. Zephyr, La Plata – Brig. Gen. John Dent was gifted the lands at the Mattawoman in 1753 in consideration of his marriage to Sarah Marshall of the Marshall Hall family. It remained in the Dent family for generations, sat empty for a while and was sold after the Civil War. It came back to the Dent family when Frank Bolton married Melissa Dement, a Dent descendant. Summer 2006

: Stagg Hall*, Port Tobacco – Built in 1766, by merchant Thomas Howe Ridgate for a local merchant, it’s one of the few remaining original structures that existed in Port Tobacco at that time with unparalleled architectural integrity and museum-quality woodwork. It is owned by Charles County and open to the public. Spring 2019

: St. Catherine* (also known as the Dr. Mudd House,) Waldorf – Dr. Samuel A. Mudd has a place in our history as the doctor who set the broken ankle of John Wilkes Booth after the latter assassinated President Lincoln. Prior to his place in history, Mudd married Sarah Frances Dyer about the time his father gave him the plantation, St. Catherine, which comprised more than 200 acres. The house was built in 1830. Descendants lived in the house until it was sold to the Maryland Historic Trust in 1970s. Now open to the public. Summer 2000 and Fall 2004.

: Rosemary Lawn, Welcome – Built by Richard Barnes, who purchased several parcels. By 1798, the site totaled 1,000 acres. Rosemary Lawn passed to Richard’s son in 1804 when it was believed the current structure was built before his death in 1844. Fall 2000

ST. MARY’S COUNTY

: Bards Field, Ridge – Overlooking Rawley Bay, it is believed to have been built by Thomas Loker sometime prior to 1799. Thomas’ wife and several of his children are buried in a small graveyard behind the house. Also, childhood home of James Pratt, who with the assistance of his wife, Audrey Pratt, family and friends, spent 21 years renovating the house until its 1994 completion. Winter 1999

: Bachelors Hope, Chaptico – Lord Baltimore granted the tract on which the manor house stands to Thomas Garrard in 1650. Garrard sold the tract to Gov. Thomas Notley, who separated 300 acres, named it Bachelors Hope and gave it to Colonel William Rozer. With its unusual architecture, it is thought to have been used as a hunting lodge or possibly a chapel. Its original purpose is still a mystery, though. Fall 2002

: Birch Hanger, Chaptico – Lord Calvert gave original owner Benjamin Solly 600 acres to form a 1,000-acres parcel, which was considered a homestead or farm. Two small log cabins were the original homes, and one is still in existence. The house was torched in the War of 1812. It was rebuilt in 1818. Spring 2004

: Deep Falls, Chaptico – Built in 1745 by Major William Thomas. The property was originally called Wales. The first house burned down to be replaced by the home known as Deep Falls. It is believed to be a great example of Southern Maryland architecture with a blend of 18th–and 19th-century styles. Once the family home of James Thomas, who was the governor of Maryland from 1833 to 1836. Deep Falls continues to be in the Thomas family. Spring 1999

: Hunters Retreat, Leonardtown – Overlooking the Moll Dyer’s Run, which flows into Breton Bay, the Greenwell/Drury family has enjoyed the home for generations since it was built in the late 1700s. The house was the childhood home of current owner, Joe Drury, along with his five brothers and sisters. His father, John Drury, Jr., and grandmother, Mary Greenwell, were also raised in the family home. Fall 2006

: Mulberry Fields, Valley Lee – It’s believed to have been built in the mid-to-late 18th century. The home is Georgian, built of brick with a hipped roof and represents the only architecture of its kind in St. Mary’s County. Summer 1999

: St. Richards Manor, Lexington Park – The late medieval manor house is believed to be the first manorial grant on the Patuxent River and built sometime around 1640 by Luke Gardiner. It was the site of the first meeting of Maryland’s General Assembly in 1645. Summer 2003

: Sotterley Plantation*, Hollywood – Overlooking the Patuxent River, it was originally part of the Resurrection Manor, granted to Thomas Cornwaleys, later sold to George and Thomas Plowden, and then to James Bowles, who built the original section of the house in 1727. The widow of Bowles married George Plater. Four generations of Platers were raised there before it was purchased by Dr. Walter Hanson Briscoe. It remained in the Briscoe family for almost a century until sold to Herbert Satterlee whose daughter, Mabel Satterlee Ingalls, inherited it after her father’s death. In 1961, she donated the property to the Sotterley Mansion Foundation, which raises funds to manage the plantation and its educational programs. Open to the public. Spring 2006

Special thanks to the people of our local historical societies: Michael Mazzeo, Jr. of the Charles County Historical Society, Mary Wolfe of the St. Mary’s Historical Society and John Johnson of the Calvert County Historical Society. We are only able to give spoonfuls of information on each house.

More information can be found in several books available at our county libraries, including Early Manor and Plantation Houses of Maryland by H. Chandlee Forman and I’m Going Down County by Kirk E Ranzetta. Watch for a new publication available this fall – Architectural History of Charles County, In the Midst of these Plains: Charles County Buildings & Landscapes, by Cathy Thompson and Nicole Diehlmann. For more information on the book, please visit the Historical Society of Charles County on Facebook.

For more information on homes listed here, click here to visit the National Register of Historic Places, or contact historical societies of each county.

Calvert County: 410-535-2452, calvertcountymd.gov
Charles County: charlescountyhistorical.org
St. Mary’s County: 301-475-2467, stmaryshistory.org

Make plans to visit the homes open to the public. You will learn something interesting!