Hammond-Harwood House, Annapolis

The Hammond-Harwood House in Annapolis, Maryland dates back to the late 1700s. Matthias Hammond was a tobacco farmer, though perhaps it is better to say that he managed a couple of plantations. To show off his wealth and to have a place to stay when he was elected to the Maryland General Assembly, he had the house constructed in 1774 in the middle of Annapolis. The architect, William Buckland, started the house but died in late 1774. His apprentice finished the building. Hammond never actually moved in, but did rent out some of the space to Jeremiah Townley Chase. Chase bought the house in 1811 for his daughter and son-in-law Frances and Richard Loockerman. Their daughter Hester married William Harwood and their family lived in it for generations. When the family died off in 1925, the house and contents were sold at auction. Nearby St. Johns College bought the property, hoping to turn it into an art school. Unfortunately, money dried up during the Great Depression and nothing happened. In 1940, the Hammond-Harwood House Association was formed, which bought the property and turned it into a museum and historic site. They still have tours most every day. We took a tour on Memorial Day weekend in 2023.

Hammond-Harwood House, Annapolis

The architect followed the Anglo-Palladian style, with a main building connected to two wings by covered hallways called "hyphens." Symmetry was the central theme in these mansions as can be seen from the exterior.

Front door

Museum entrance into the north hyphen

The back of the house is quite similar to the front, though the door is less ornate. Also, the bottom and top parts of the door are separate, allowing residents to open one or the other depending on how much air flow they wanted. In hot summers, family and guests would stay downstairs with the front and back doors open to allow airflow.

The back door

The top of the back is just like the top of the front

The garden originally extended down to the waterfront. As times got harder, the family sold off some lots. A small garden still exists.

Back garden

One of the Loockerman boys loved to carve everywhere, including adding his initials to one of the exterior bricks!

"IL 1829"

The south wing served as the kitchen, laundry, and slave quarters. The kitchen had all the latest gadgets from the late 1700s and early 1800s.

Fireplace and lots of cooking implements

Table of kitchen gadgets and some info on who lived here

The sort of meal the servants had

One "high tech" device was this movable candle stand. The light could be moved up or down depending on the needs of the kitchen staff.

Only moves up and down

The spice cabinet had a lock on it since spices were so valuable back in the day. The lady of the house held the key.

The spice must flow!

The living area of the house has many portraits of various family members. They date back to revolutionary period and many were done by the Peale family.

One matriarch

Proof of wealth--a pet in the portrait!

The front door has seven locks in it, though there is only one keyhole on the outside. Our docent had a fun time quizzing our eight year-old about many things in the house, including identifying all the locks.

Why we didn't come in this door

Right next to the door is a clock. The style in the 1800s was to show off the mechanism, so the clock did not have sides.

Displaying their wares

To the right of the front door is a small room that the master of the house used as an office. There is even a door in the back of the room in case he heard a guest come in and decided not to greet that particular person!

Front office (Washington in picture)

Another desk

The back room on the main floor is the dining room. The family entertained guests here.

Dining room

Fireplace in the dining room

Just off the dining room is a drawing room where the ladies would come after dinner when the men were having their port and cigars.

Tea service set-up

On the left of the front door is a Lady's Waiting Room, where the lady of the house would entertain guests when they arrived.

Front drawing room

The staircase includes a small closet under the stairs, just like in Harry Potter!

Going up

Right above the dining room is a ball room where the family did more entertaining, including playing music and dancing.

Ball room

Across the hall is a game room for more relaxing.

Card table

Some chess men

Smoking table

The clay pipes on the table above were made extra long for sharing purposes. Once one gentleman was done, he broke off a bit of the end and let the next fellow have smoke.

Two bedrooms, a master and a guest, are also on the second floor.

Guest bedroom

Master bedroom

No closets up here, just drawers

The portrait in the corner depicts one of the children with her doll. In the chair under the portrait is the same doll!

I can't decide if this is creepy or not

The master bedroom includes some "model furniture" which are not toys for the kids, but things a craftsman used to show what he could make. The smaller version gave the potential buyer an idea of what the finished product would look like.

People weren't that much shorter back then

Our tour took us back out to the garden and the main office. We saw some of the flowers that bloom in the spring.

A rose by any other name?

We enjoyed our visit to the Hammond-Harwood House and recommend it.