Our County Councilman has his eye on our community, but cannot tell us why. Mr. Davis has called up for review the Historic conditions for new homes that are being plopped into the middle of a Notional Register eligible district. For some reason Mr. Davis cannot tell neighbors of the new development what exactly his concerns are, so of course they cannot adequately prepare for the hearing.
It
occurs to me that there is some question
as to the history of my community and the reasons for the conditions
recommended by the Historical Preservation Commission. As a neighbor to this development project, I
felt obliged to recuse myself as Chairman of the Prince George's County
Historic Preservation Commission deliberations that resulted in the current recommendations.
Let me
be clear. Our community is eligible for listing on the National Register of
Historic Places. In 1990 a survey was conducted of our community which listed
88 contributing resources in Woodland. The designation would have come with limited
protections against adverse state and federal actions for the owners of
historic structures. Historic property owners also would be eligibility for
state income tax credit. For the record, my house was built in 1987 and is not
eligible. This project will all but certainly destroy that eligibility so that
a few may gain at the expense of the many which is typical in this county. The
conditions set forth are an attempt to preserve some of the integrity of the
community and only applies to the first (front) four lots.
Woodland
was eligible as a historic district in the National Register of Historic
Places. Our community met the following criteria:
Criterion A – Woodland is a fine
example of an intact, rural agricultural community that reflects the continuity
of change over time. Woodland is also representative of the importance of
tobacco as a cash crop and the use of plantation slavery in Maryland’s
agricultural history. It is also associated with the theme of transportation as
it is the site of several important roads and bridges in Prince George’s
County. Woodland contains two houses associated with freed African-Americans, which
illustrates the transition from slavery to freedom after the Civil War.
Criterion C – Woodland contains a
variety of architecture that reflects distinct periods of time from the
late-eighteenth century to the first-quarter of the twentieth century. Styles
represented include excellent examples of Georgian/Federal Greek Revival,
Italianate, Victorian Gothic, Queen Anne, and Craftsman styles, which includes
both vernacular and high-style designs. Woodland is also the site of a rare
example of a private Roman Catholic chapel erected by the Hill family at
Compton Bassett. This is believed to be one of the last remaining private
chapels in Prince George’s County.
Criterion D – The community has the
potential to yield significant information about NativeAmerican inhabitants and
the enslaved African-American community in Prince George’s County.
In addition to its historic significance, Woodland has
retained, up until this development, its integrity of location, design,
setting,workmanship, materials, feeling, and association.
Our Woodland is a rural agricultural
community located in central Prince George’s County, east of Upper Marlboro,
Maryland. The land associated with the area known as Woodland was owned by
Clement Hill, Jr., who patented 748 acres called Compton Bassett in 1699. The
first frame building erected on the site was demolished when the family built a
large Federal-style brick house circa 1780. Compton Bassett (PG: 79-063-10) is
also the site of a rare example of a private Roman Catholic chapel erected by
the Hill family. This is believed to be one of the last remaining private
chapels in Prince George’s County. The Hill family continued to add acreage to
their landholdings, and by 1818, a direct decendant, Dr. William Hill (arrested
by the British along with his friends and neighbors: Beanes [buried across the
street from the Upper Marlbough Post Office], Bowie, and Weems in events that
led to the writing of the Star-Spangled Banner) amassed 2,184 acres which he
resurveyed and renamed “Woodland.”1 His holdings stretched from the Patuxent
River on the east to the limits of Upper Marlboro on the west. When Dr. Hill
died in 1823, his land was divided among his four children.2 After Hill’s
death, his descendents constructed several houses located nearby including
Bleak Hill (PG: 79-063-06) and Ashland. John C. Wyvill, a prominent local
carpenter, was responsible for the construction of several historic buildings
in the community including the Eckenrode-Wyvill House (PG: 79-063-08) and
Linden Hill (PG: 79-063-50).
Dr.
Hill's son, William Beanes Hill, who inherited Compton Bassett from his father,
received a charter in 1854 to construct a toll bridge across the Patuxent
River, connecting Anne Arundel and Prince George’s counties. The bridge became
known as Hill’s Bridge and connected to the Marlboro-Queen Anne Road, further
establishing the road as an important transportation route.4 William Beanes
Hill continued the family tradition of farming and landholding and acquired
more than 3,500 acres south and east of Upper Marlboro. He earned income from
his various tobacco plantations, as well as from a commercial venture in which
he developed a riverfront complex complete with stores, warehouses, wharf,
mill, and residential dwellings to take advantage of burgeoning commerce on the
river. In 1850, Hill reported owning 62 slaves, ranging in age from one to 100
years old.5 In 1860, Hill had reduced the number of slaves he owned to 32
slaves, who were housed in four “slave houses.”6 That same year, his
plantations produced 500,000 pounds of tobacco, considerably higher than other
plantations in the area. In addition to being a successful planter, Hill was
also involved in the political aspects of life in Prince George’s County,
serving for 25 years as the Chief Judge of the Orphans Court and serving one
term in the Maryland State Senate.
Other
significant buildings in the area include houses of two freedman, constructed
on land that belonged to Henry Waring Clagett. A one-and-one-half-story wood-frame dwelling
at 3708 Old Crain Highway was built sometime before 1875 by freedman John Henry
Quander. A former slave of Mordecai Plummer, Quander purchased
one-and-a-half-acres of land from Henry Clagett (Plummer’s nephew). Freedman Nat
Beall constructed his one-story dwelling at 3702 Old Crain Highway on land he
bought from Clagett in 1874.9 The 1860 Federal Census lists Clagett as owning
26 slaves, thus, it may be possible that Beall was a former Clagett slave.
Transportation
is a significant theme in the Woodland community. Old Crain Highway, which
bisects the community, is an important early road that roughly follows the
circa 1700 Marlborough-Queen Anne Road, connecting the two port towns. When
Upper Marlboro was designated as the new county seat in 1721, the
Marlborough-Queen Anne Road began to see more traffic.11 Hill’s Bridge was
constructed in 1854 over the Patuxent River, providing a connection between
Anne Arundel and Prince George’s County. The construction of Robert Crain
Highway in 1927 brought additional traffic through the agricultural community.
This highway resulted in the closure of a portion of the original right-of-way,
located near Bleak Hill. The construction of the Marlboro Bypass in the 1950s,
which was later expanded and became U.S. Route 301, moved traffic to the east,
effectively removing the majority of traffic through the community. This
highway has allowed Woodland to remain a rural agricultural landscape.[1]
The 1861
Martenet map shows a rural landscape in the Woodland area. The only
identifiable houses include that of Clement Hill and his son William Beanes
Hill. Also shown is Hill’s Bridge across the Patuxent. By 1878, the Hopkins map
documents more growth in the area. The Hill family has expanded and constructed
additional buildings, and their waterfront complex on the river is also shown.
Many other families are represented, including the Clagetts, Quander, and Beall
families. The map also shows significant growth along what is now Marlboro
Pike, leading into Upper Marlboro, the county seat.
There were seven sites designated Historic in Woodland in
the 1990 survey, one of which has since been lost to fire:
• PG: 79-063-05, Bowling Heights (NR), 3610 Old Crain
Highway
• PG: 79-063-06, Bleak Hill, 4103 Old Crain Highway
• PG: 79-063-08, Eckenrode-Wyvill House, 4501 Wyvill Road
• PG: 79-063-10, Compton Bassett (NR), 16508 Marlboro Pike
• PG: 79-063-11, Ashland (NR), 16107 Marlboro Pike, 1867
• PG: 79-063-50, Wyvill House (Linden Hill), 4102 Old Crain
Highway
There is one Historic Resource and one new historic site :
• 79-063-12,
Gregor Hall. 4004 Old Crain Highway
• PG: 79-063-07, Site of Bowling-Buck House, 4106 Old Crain
Highway
[1]
COUNTY COUNCIL OF PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MARYLAND
1999 Legislative Session
Resolution No.
CR-39-1999
Proposed by Council Member Estepp
Introduced by Council Member Estepp
Co-Sponsors
Date of Introduction
July 27, 1999
RESOLUTION
A RESOLUTION concerning
Old Crain Highway
For the purpose of designating Old Crain Highway in
Upper Marlboro, within the limits described herein, as a Scenic Road pursuant
to Subtitle 23 (Roads and Sidewalks) of the County Code.
WHEREAS,
Subtitle 23 (Roads and Sidewalks) in the County Code authorizes the County
Council to designate Scenic Roads; and
WHEREAS,
a Scenic Road, as defined in Section 23-102, is a public or private road which
provides scenic views along a substantial part of its length through natural or
manmade features such as forest or extensive woodland, cropland, pasturage, or
meadows; distinctive topography, including outcroppings, streambeds, or
wetlands; traditional building types; historic sites; or roadway features such
as curving, rolling roadway alignment and “leaf tunnels;” and
WHEREAS,
the Master Plan for Subregion VI, approved in 1993, recommends preservation of
historic and scenic roads in the Subregion and refers to the Rural Historic
Landscapes and Scenic Roads Study, Subregion VI, December 1988, which also
recommends preservation of historic landscapes and scenic roads; and
WHEREAS,
the Master Plan for Subregion VI specifically names Old Crain Highway southwest
of Upper Marlboro as a “significant historic landscape;” notes that the highway
"still offers vistas of rolling farmland, continuing the historic usage of
this area;” and states that the highway is the location of Weston, “the early 19th-century plantation of
the locally prominent Clagett family, with its tree-lined entry drive, its
wooded house site and burial ground, and its clearly defined agricultural
spaces, as well as a line of Bald
Cypress trees planted along Old Crain Highway;” and
WHEREAS,
the Master Plan for Subregion VI makes the following specific recommendation:
Old
Crain Highway traverses a landscape that is eligible for the National Register
of Historic Places. The area should be
preserved through land use policies, complemented with the preservation of the
historic road alignment. Special
landscape features, such as the Bald Cypress trees near Weston, should be
protected.
WHEREAS,
to implement these Master Plan recommendations, the County Council deems it
appropriate to designate Old Crain Highway south of Upper Marlboro, between the
town boundary and U.S. Rt. 301, as a Scenic Road.
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the County Council of Prince George's County,
Maryland, that Old Crain Highway southwest of Upper Marlboro, between the
boundary of the Town of Upper Marlboro and U.S. Rt. 301, is hereby designated
as a Scenic Road pursuant to Subtitle 23 of the County Code.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it is the Council’s intention in designating Old Crain
Highway as a Scenic Road that the scenic and historic character of this road be
preserved to the greatest possible extent consistent with the public health,
safety, and welfare, and therefore roadway improvements should be limited to
those necessary to meet safety requirements and otherwise satisfy prudent
design and construction standards.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Public Works and Transportation
shall apply its Design Guidelines and Standards for Scenic Historic Roads, as
most recently approved, to all roadway improvements on Old Crain Highway.
Adopted
this 27th day of July, 1999.
COUNTY
COUNCIL OF PRINCE
GEORGE'S COUNTY, MARYLAND
BY: _________________________________
Dorothy
F. Bailey
Vice
Chair
ATTEST:
___________________________
Joyce T. Sweeney
Clerk of the Council
