Historic house in Maryland, United States
United States historic place
|
Wye House
|
|
|
|
Wye House mansion, seen from the front lawn
|
Show map of the United States
|
Nearest city
| Easton, Maryland
|
---|
Built
| 1784
|
---|
Architect
| Key, Robert
|
---|
Architectural style
| Georgian, Federal
|
---|
NRHP reference
No.
| 70000264
|
---|
|
Added to NRHP
| April 15, 1970
[1]
|
---|
Designated NHL
| April 15, 1970
[2]
|
---|
Wye House
is a
historic residence
and former headquarters of a
historic plantation house
northwest of
Easton
in rural
Talbot County, Maryland
. Built in 1781?1784, it is a high-quality and well-proportioned example of a wooden-frame
Southern plantation house
. It was designated a
National Historic Landmark
in 1970.
History
[
edit
]
The Wye
plantation
was created in the 1650s by a
Welsh
Puritan
and wealthy
planter
, Edward Lloyd. Between 1780 and 1790, the main house was built by his great-great-grandson,
Edward Lloyd IV
, using the profits generated by the
forced labor
of
enslaved people
.
[3]
It is cited as an example between the transition of
Georgian
and
Federal architecture
, which is attributed to builder Robert Key. Nearby the house is an
orangery
, a rare survival of an early garden structure where orange and lemon trees were cultivated, and which still contains its original 18th-century heating system of hot-air ducts.
[4]
[5]
During its peak, the plantation's owners enslaved more than 1,000 people to work lands that totaled more than 42,000 acres (17,000 ha).
[6]
Though the land has shrunk to 1,300 acres (530 ha) today, it is still owned by the descendants of Edward Lloyd, now in their 11th generation on the property.
Frederick Douglass
was enslaved on the plantation, from around the ages of seven and eight, and spoke extensively of the brutal conditions of the plantation in his autobiography,
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave
.
[6]
Modern situation
[
edit
]
The nearby hamlets of
Unionville
and
Copperville
are now home to many descendants of the people who were enslaved at Wye House.
[7]
This has created an interesting dynamic, with the descendants of the enslavers and the enslaved living within a very short distance of one another.
[3]
[6]
[8]
The Wye House plantation gained media attention in 2006 for archaeological investigations led by the
University of Maryland
.
[6]
[8]
In 2011, excavation of the greenhouse, built by enslaved African people, brought a discovery of African charms laid to ward off bad spirits at the house's furnace and entrance.
[9]
See also
[
edit
]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Wye House
.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"National Register Information System"
.
National Register of Historic Places
.
National Park Service
. January 23, 2007.
- ^
"Wye House"
.
National Historic Landmark summary listing
. National Park Service
. Retrieved
June 17,
2008
.
- ^
a
b
Ydstie, John (October 20, 2007).
"Plantation Dig Reveals Md. Town's Painful Past"
.
National Public Radio
. Retrieved
February 7,
2008
.
- ^
"Orangery at Wye House"
.
D.O. Garden Stories
. Retrieved
October 27,
2018
.
- ^
"Wye House, Orangery, Bruffs Island Road, Tunis Mills, Talbot County, MD"
.
Historic American Buildings Survey
. 1936.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Wilford, John Noble (September 6, 2006).
"An Abolitionist Leads the Way in Unearthing of Slaves' Past"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
July 13,
2007
.
- ^
Archaeology in Annapolis Project.
"People of Wye House: Descendants"
.
University of Maryland
. Retrieved
May 2,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
Williamson, Elizabeth (July 21, 2006).
"Unearthing Slavery, Finding Peace"
.
The Washington Post
. Retrieved
July 13,
2007
.
- ^
Dominguez, Alex (February 13, 2011).
"Slaves hid African charms on Colonial greenhouse"
.
San Francisco Chronicle
.
Associated Press
. Retrieved
February 14,
2011
.
External links
[
edit
]
- Where Land and Water Intertwine: An Architectural History of Talbot County
- Wye House, Talbot County
, including undated, at Maryland Historical Trust
- Frederick Douglass Birthplace Driving Tour
- Williamson, Elizabeth (July 21, 2006).
"Unearthing Slavery, Finding Peace"
.
The Washington Post
. Retrieved
July 13,
2007
.
- Wilford, John Noble (September 6, 2006).
"An Abolitionist Leads the Way in Unearthing of Slaves' Past"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
July 13,
2007
.
- Wye House, Mansion, Bruffs Island Road, Tunis Mills vicinity, Talbot, MD
at the
Historic American Buildings Survey
(HABS)
- Wye House, Captain's House, Bruffs Island Road, Tunis Mills vicinity, Talbot, MD
at HABS
- Wye House, Cemetery, Bruffs Island Road, Tunis Mills vicinity, Talbot, MD
at HABS
- Wye House, Corn Crib, Bruffs Island Road, Tunis Mills vicinity, Talbot, MD
at HABS
- Wye House, Orangery, Bruffs Island Road, Tunis Mills vicinity, Talbot, MD
at HABS
- Wye House, Smokehouse, Bruffs Island Road, Tunis Mills vicinity, Talbot, MD
at HABS
38°51′12″N
76°10′06″W
/
38.853398°N 76.168406°W
/
38.853398; -76.168406
|
---|
Topics
| | |
---|
Lists
by county
| |
---|
Lists by city
| |
---|
Other lists
| |
---|
|