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Teatime at the Hampton Mansion: Bonna L. Nelson

Teatime at the Hampton Mansion

by Bonna L. Nelson

I clearly remember four generations of my family’s ladies ~ grandmother, mother, my sister and I and my toddler daughter ~ leisurely sipping tea on the terrace at the glorious Hampton Mansion. The tables were covered with cornflower-blue cloths and adorned with crisp white linen napkins and blue-and-white patterned fine china. There was always a breeze as we sat in the shade of old trees on the commanding hill above the estate.

We shared a luncheon repast of scrumptious chicken salad, spicy crab cakes and small beaten biscuits along with dishes of local fresh fruits and vegetables. It was a communal experience that we joyfully participated in a few times a year, usually spring and summer, at the Hampton estate in Dulaney Valley, north of Baltimore. Our tea was usually followed by a stroll through the always beautiful Hampton gardens and browsing the aisles of its cheerful gift shop.

I can’t clearly remember when and why we stopped visiting tea. Was it after my grandmother could no longer comfortably enjoy our special outing? Was it when my sister left for college? Was it when my daughter became too rambunctious and

bored? Or, was it after the tearoom was closed in 1998 by the new owners, the National Park Service (NPS)?

In our years of blissfully patronizing the Hampton Mansion tearoom, we did not know the history of the property and its seven generations of Ridgelys who built and managed the estate. Now known as the Hampton National Historic Site (HNHS), located on Hampton Lane near Dulaney Road, it is operated by the NPS. On a recent visit with my daughter, who has no memory of teatime enchantments, we learned what we did not know about the people, the land, the mansion’s architecture and decor, the mansion outbuildings, the farm buildings, the gardens, the estate industries and the social interests.

The first shock came when we learned from our online research at the NPS HNHS website, from onsite NPS Park Rangers and from our self-guided tour with signage, was that the estate was built by 500 African slaves as well as European indentured servants.

We learned that Dinah Toogood, an enslaved worker and estate head cook (from the 1840s to the 1860s) at what was known as Hampton Hall, probably worked in the same kitchen that was later used to make chicken salad and crab cakes for the tearoom.

We learned that more than 100 years later, Yvonne Barber lost the job she had held for 43 years ~ managing the tearoom and creating the delicacies that we so enjoyed on its terrace ~ when the NPS closed the tearoom over kitchen safety concerns and declining revenue.

So much that we didn’t know. Would it have made a difference to us?

We learned that HNHS is one of America’s best-preserved estates and that it showcases Mid-Atlantic life from before the American Revolution to after WWII. Estate structures include the Georgian-style mansion, called Hampton Hall, its outbuildings; formal terraced gardens and landscape features; and a farm site with slave quarters, dairy barns, a creamery and an overseer’s home.

HNHS preserves 63 of the original

25,000 acres that once formed the core of a vast industrial, commercial and agricultural empire built by the Ridgely family. The site refl ects aspects of American history and the social, cultural and economic activities across three centuries. The occupancy of seven generations of the Ridgely family and their diverse enslaved, indentured and free workforce are also well researched and documented. The entire estate has changed little over its many years of existence.

In our studies we learned that the fi ve-part Georgian-style mansion contains an astounding 24,000 square feet of living space. Prized for its symmetry, it was constructed between 1783 and 1790. The Hampton Mansion’s principal rooms are furnished to interpret varying periods during which the family occupied the home. Though the mansion was not open for tours due to the pandemic, we looked at the rooms at the HNHS

website and I remembered some of the glamorous furnishings from past visits.

The primary rooms include the great hall, parlor, dining room, drawing room, music room, kitchen, master bedchamber and bedchambers for guests and children. In decorating the mansion, the NPS is guided by a vast collection of the Ridgelys’ furnishing plans and documents about objects as well as historic photographs left by the family. Over 90 percent of the objects on exhibit are original to the mansion: furniture, drapery, carpet, fine and decorative arts, china, silverware and even chamber pots.

On the grounds, we strolled by magnificent gardens and surviving structures that supported the mansion. Built from the late 18th to early 20th centuries, these include a rare ice house, a paint house, a smoke house, two privies, two large stables, a walled family cemetery, two greenhouses, an orangery, a gardener’s house and maintenance building and a pump house. We were surprised to see that the structures were so well built that they have lasted over 100 years and that the parterre (formally patterned flower garden) gardens are still beautifully maintained by HNHS staff and volunteers.

Along with the Hampton Mansion, the some of the outbuildings and the Lower House on the farm grounds were closed to tours. In addition, the mansion’s cupola was enclosed in scaffolding and closed for renovations. Our research revealed that the Ridgelys used the cupola for its excellent view from the hill to show guests the magnificent and expansive estate grounds. The Ridgelys and their managers also used the cupola to oversee the estate laborers ~ slaves and indentured and paid workers.

We found the ice house near the mansion fascinating, though it, too, was closed due to the pandemic. The

Teatime house/granary, a mule barn and the foundation for a corn crib. Meadows and fields survive as well. When I took tea with family, I do not recall that the Home Farm buildings were open or discussed on tours. The slave quarters were not mentioned. I did not know then what I know now: that enslaved persons and indentured servants labored to make the Ridgelys’ elegant lifestyle possible. storage unit was built 34 feet under- The oldest building of those surground to house the ice that was cut viving in the farm area is the gameach winter from nearby frozen ponds brel-roofed Lower House, dating and lakes and hauled by sledges and from the mid-18th century. Interesthorses. With two openings, it allowed ing to us was the fact that the Ridgely ice blocks to be shoveled into the tun- family lived there both while the nel from the upper hatch opening. mansion was under construction and Through the lower opening, covered again after selling to the NPS in 1948 with a black iron gate, we could see a stairwell leading to the base of the ice storage tunnel where ice blocks were tampered down, watered and later retrieved for the kitchen. I imagine that even with no refrigerators back then, the Ridgely adults enjoyed ice-chilled drinks and the Ridgely children ice cream thanks to ice from the ice house and much labor all year round.

The Home Farm across Hampton Lane is where the estate’s commercial and industrial activities took place, as well as additional activities to support the mansion. Surviving structures on the Home Farm campus include two stone slave quarters, a log structure, an ash house (used to collect ashes for making soap, candles and lime for fertilizer), a dairy/creamery, a long 34

when they could no longer care for the property. When not occupied by the Ridgelys, the Lower House was home to overseers and farm managers and was used to conduct business related to the farm.

The surviving farm structures are also in remarkable condition. On our tour, we saw that some of the buildings, such as the two well-preserved stone slave quarters, featured dioramas and furniture depicting interpretations of slave family life. The stone used to create the buildings came from the Ridgelys’ own quarry. The handsome farm structures with stone exteriors and gingerbread trim were designed and built for the family’s viewing pleasure.

The difference between the meager interior slave accommodations and the lavish mansion furnishings is quite apparent, as you would expect. The entire family slept in one room, usually near the cook fire. There, they had meals together and some privacy from the overseer.

Copies of documents about the Ridgely estate slaves are hung on the walls. They include descriptions of clothing allowances for slaves, discussions about how slaves were named, descriptions of how slaves lived at Hampton, descriptions of slaves purchased and rewards for escaped slaves. One poster explained that slaves were acquired for their skills, ranging from farm and dairy workers to workers for the estate’s iron furnace (no longer in existence), blacksmiths, carpenters, jockeys, gardeners, cooks, servers, house servants and so on.

In our research, we discovered that a multi-year study completed in 2020 focused on tracing the lives of Hampton Mansion’s escaped and freed slaves. Written by a multidisciplinary team at the University of Maryland, it traces the lives of the people who obtained their freedom

The probate inventory list of Charles Carnan Ridgely, who served as Maryland’s governor, showing enslaved ironworkers and their monetary value.

A Hampton laborer circa 1897. Hampton staff believe this is Jim Pratt, who was born enslaved at Hampton and then worked as a paid employee on the estate after emancipation.

from enslavement at Hampton, including their family members and descendants and where they settled after freedom. The information learned will be incorporated into programming and signage at the HNHS and used as a core baseline for other NPS sites.

I learned from our research, selfguided tour and signage what I didn’t know about the Hampton Mansion during family teatimes so long ago. I wonder what I would have done back then. Perhaps ask the Park Rangers about the history of the slave labor that built and maintained the mansion and its businesses? Perhaps ask to see the slave quarters and the farm buildings that were not open for touring back then, to my knowledge? Perhaps ask about where the slaves went when they escaped or were freed (which is just now just being studied)? I know that I would like to return to HNHS to learn more about the many, many people who made all the glamor possible for just a few.

I hope that readers will visit this multifaceted historic site. During this time of limited travel options, it is just a 1¾-hour drive from Easton, and there are many dining choices in the nearby Towson area. Admission is free. The HNHS is located at 535 Hampton Lane, Towson, MD 21886. More information is available by calling 410-823-1309 or online at www.nps.gov/hamp.

As of this writing, August 2021, due to Covid-19, the gates and parking lots are open daily 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. but only on Thursday through Sunday are some outbuildings and restrooms open. The Visitors Center is not open either, but on Thursday through Sunday, the Park Rangers are posted outside under a small tent to answer questions and share maps, brochures and Junior Ranger books. As mentioned above, the Mansion and Lower House are closed. Masks are required in all indoor spaces. No tours are available. Best to check the website before visiting for changes.

Bonna L. Nelson is a Bay-area writer, columnist, photographer and world traveler. She resides in Easton with her husband, John.

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