USA > Maryland > Caroline County > History of Caroline County, Maryland, from its beginning > Part 8
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This brother, Zabdiel Potter 2nd, was a practicing physician in the county at the outbreak of the Revolu- tion. He was commissioned captain of the first Caro- line company of the flying camp, but resigned to become surgeon's mate that he might utilize his medical skill where it was so greatly needed.
Dr. Potter died in 1739 and, like his father, left two sons of whom Caroline is justly proud. In his will he expressed a desire that these sons should engage in trade together, but Nathaniel, the elder, preferred to follow his father's profession. He graduated in medi- cine at the University of Pennsylvania, and later be- came a member of the faculty of the University of Mary- land, which position he held until his death in 1843.
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William, the younger son, became a merchant in Denton. He married Ann Webb, daughter of Colonel William Richardson. For four years (1797, '98, '99 and 1804) he represented Caroline in the lower House of the Assembly. In 1806 he became director for our county of the newly established branch of the Farmer's Bank at Annapolis in Easton.
In 1809 he retired from business and returned to Potter's Landing, where he had the year previous com- pleted the main building of the present mansion. Here he probably expected to spend the rest of his life in farming, which seems to have been his chief delight, but the War of 1812 changed these plans. During this con- flict he became Brigadier-General of the Maryland Mili- tia. General Potter three times served on the Gover- nor's Council and in the years 1816 and 1831, being the first named, was next to the governor in state adminis- tration.
In the rear of the mansion two marble slabs bear these inscriptions :
"Sacred to the memory of Ann W. Potter who departed this life 12th of Sept. 1836, Aged 64 years."
"General William Potter who departed this life Nov. 25, 1847 in the 76th year of his age."
A few years after the death of General Potter, his sons having died and his daughters married, the prop- erty at Potter's Landing was purchased by Colonel John Arthur Willis. During the Civil War fonr companies of the First Eastern Shore Regiment of Maryland Volun- teers were raised at Potter's Landing, it having been Colonel Willis who initiated the formation of this regi- ment. In later years the name of Potter Town was changed to Williston in memory of the Colonel and his family.
Potter's Landing was for over a century the lead- ing shipping port of Caroline county. During the lives of General Potter and Colonel Willis lines of sailing vessels plied between this wharf and Baltimore, and un- til the close of the last century, travel between that city and the central part of Caroline was entirely by boats, all of which stopped at this landing. The wharf is still used by the farmers of the neighborhood as a shipping point for their freight.
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Flax, Flax Basket, Flax Hetchels
Flax-brake
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LIFE IN CAROLINE FOLLOWING THE REVOLU- TION.
Some idea of the general condition of Caroline coun- ty following the Revolutionary War may be obtained from a survey of the Tax Record for the year 1783. At this time about one-third of the county was reported as being in a state of cultivation besides 66 acres of meadow land and the balance uncleared. The population was abont two-fifths as large as at present, hence there was quite as much cleared land in proportion to the inhabi- tants then as now.
Cleared farm land, on the average, was assessed at about $5 per aere, the wooded land about half as much. At this time there were recorded 290 slaves between the ages of 8 and 14 years. These were assessed at £25 (about $100 each). The 334 male slaves between the ages of 14 and 45 years were given a valuation of $70 ($300) each, while the 266 female slaves between 14 and 36 years of age were assessed at £60 ($250) each.
In addition to slaves, the personal property assess- ed consisted of silver plate, horses, oxen, and black cat- tle. There were returned as assessed 3750 horses in the county and 7946 black cattle, besides considerable silver- ware. The total assessment of real and personal prop- erty amounted to £247,000 or slightly over $1,000,000. It is clear, however, that property was assessed very low then in comparison with our modern idea of values.
Without any intention of being personal a few of the largest individual assessments will, perhaps, give the reader a clearer idea of the larger land holdings at that time.
Thomas Goldsborough, at Old Town, was assessed with 1148 acres of land of which 400 acres were cleared. In addition a grist mill and personal property brought the total assessment to £2630, about $12,000.
Thomas Hardcastle, at Castle Hall, about 1800 acres. Benjamin Silvester, Oakland, 1200 acres.
William Whitely, 1500 acres.
Henry Dickinson, 1800 acres.
William Ennals, 2500 acres.
William Frazier, 1400 acres.
James Murray, 2800 acres. Zabdiel Potter, 1012 acres.
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William Richardson, 795 acres.
It will be understood, of course, that the above nam- ed persons were among the most prominent and weal- thy in the county at that time. The rate of taxation was about one eightieth (1/80) of the assessed value or $1.25 per hundred dollars.
Before the Revolution there were in the county only about six or eight brick buildings. In the twenty years following the war, this number increased to approxi- mately thirty. The reason for this increase may be ex- plained in the following way.
The early settlers in this section had been thrifty folk, working hard and living simply. Their labors had been rewarded by flourishing crops of tobacco which brought a splendid price in England. With the organi- zation of the county there was a natural impetus to use this acquired wealth for the erection of more comfort- able and permanent dwellings, but the close-following war delayed these plans. With the close of the war, however, these people as citizens of a republic felt new power within themselves. The hard, thrifty lives, no longer necessary, men at once started to make such changes in their mode of living as their financial condi- tions warranted.
The houses built during this period were substan- tially constructed and of similar design. The main build- ings, three stories high with gabled roofs, had a lower wing built at the side which was sometimes of frame rather than brick. The walls were about eighteen inch- es thick, the massive doors of diagonal timber. So sub- stantially constructed were these mansions, they might have been used as forts in time of seige. Many of them have nobly withstood their worst enemy, Father Time, but others have been forced to yield to other enemies- fire and neglect. To better preserve these worthy struc- tures, some of them have been covered with cement.
Mr. Tubbs, in his chapter on Caroline County in Co- lonial Eastern Shore, speaking of Cedarhurst and Daf- fin House, says what is true of all these dwellings :
"The doors, mantles and interior woodwork of these houses speak eloquently of the consummate art of the olden-time carpen- ters and joiners."
The broad winding stairways found in many of these houses are no less tributes to their makers' art.
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With the completion of these fine homes a gay social life sprang up in the county. Such houses were well adapted to the house parties, dances, and quilting par- ties popular in the early 1800's. In winter the social and political life at Annapolis attracted many of the well-to-do people of the county, while in milder seasons fox-hunting, horse racing, and other outdoor sports were indulged in at home.
But life was not all merry making. The planters, though they usually employed overseers, daily rode over their plantations to superintend the work of slaves in the fields, shops, and stables. On some of the planta- tions we find records of stores having been kept. The women, beside managing the household affairs, directed the spinning, weaving, knitting, and making of slaves' clothes. The actual work was sometimes done by the slaves, but oftener by women living in the neighboring villages and on small farms. An old account book from a plantation store credits a certain widow with knitting 3 pairs of men's and 2 pairs of women's stockings and weaving 30 yards of toe linen. The same widow is fur- ther credited "By making Billy's breeches."
In the absence of public schools, children were taught
89. Samal.
194.
WEAVING.
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at home by their mothers or in small private schools on the plantations. When the boys were old enough they were sent away to school; the girls stayed at home, for folks in those days thought it better for them to be good housewives than scholars.
The people during these years lived well. The smoke honses were filled with home-cured meats, while fertile fields supplied wheat, corn, and other necessary foodstuffs. The neighboring woods and rivers offered a supply of wild game, fish, crabs and oysters in season. From peaches and apples, pressed in copper stills, bran- dy was made.
Wheat bread was not commonly used. Except in the wealthiest families, corn bread was the custom. John- ny cake, made of corn meal, and plate cake of wheat flour baked on wooden boards set upon the hearth, seem to have been the favorite breads of the time. Tradition has it that so weary did the people become of corn bread that gradually the wheat acreage increased.
It is interesting to note the clothing worn by people of means at this time. The men wore tight fitting coats, cut to display their fancy waistcoats, knee breeches fast- ened with silver buckles, long light-colored silk hose, and low black shoes with silver buckles. For riding heavy boots replaced these shoes. Their soft linen shirts had pleated frills and were fastened at the wrist with silver buttons.
The women, not to be outdone by the men, wore gay colored silks with narrow low-neck bodies and long full skirts. Their shoes were dainty, low cut pumps which sometimes boasted high red heels. Of such splendid ma- terial were the clothes of that time made and so lasting the styles, we often find single pieces or entire outfits willed from one generation to another.
A simpler form of life was lived in the small frame houses dotting the villages and countryside. In these houses the kitchens with their broad fireplaces were the family living rooms. Over these fires the meals were cooked. near their warmth the spinning done, and by their cherry light during the long winter evenings the tired family rested after the labors of the day.
These houses were meagerly furnished. Except for an odd piece or two, the furniture was made by the men of the family. Wooden or pewter plates, spoons and bowls were used upon the tables. The iron pots, ket-
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tles, hominy mortars, and candle molds were so highly prized as to be mentioned in the wills of their owners. Even upon the large plantations, china was rarely used until in later years.
CANDLE MAKING.
The clothing of these folk was coarse, especially in comparison with the silks and linens used by the proper- ous planters' families. With the organization of Meth- odist societies, many of the women adopted the plain full dress and broad brimmed bonnets of that sect.
It is from these sturdy people that Caroline is large- ly populated now. Many of the prominent old families have no lineal descendants living within her borders. Their former mansions are left to an uncertain fate, their family burying grounds unkept, their very names almost unknown.
(An account of the political conditions about this period may be found under the Life of Thomas Cul- breth, given elsewhere in this book.)
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OAK LAWN.
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EARLY BRICK DWELLINGS IN CAROLINE.
During the early period of Caroline county's his- tory there were a number of pretentious brick dwellings erected within her borders. Indeed some even antedate the formation of the county, having been built previous to the Revolutionary War. Nearly all of these houses were designed alike-a large main building with a low wing extending at the side or rear. Tradition has it that the bricks used in their construction were brought here from England, but there is strong evidence against this being altogether true. In the first place, English bricks of that period were glazed and those used through- ont the county were not; second, splendid bricks were made here, so it seems unlikely that with the feeling then existing between England and the colonies that the people of this province would engage in any unnecessary trade with the Mother Country. Near many of these houses, wide but shallow pits can still be seen from which large quantities of clay have been taken, undoubtedly for the purpose of making bricks. For the sake of pre- serving the bricks many of these houses were later cov- ered with cement.
One of the oldest brick dwellings in Caroline county is the Frazier Flats house, the home of Captain William Frazier, located several miles below Preston on a tract of land known as Fraizer's Neck. The house, built previous to the Revolution, antedates even the county in which it stands. It is a spacious building of red brick, bearing fine examples of workmanship in its colonial door way, staircase and cornices. Until within the past generation much of the original furniture remained in the mansion, bearing the name of a cabinet maker of Drury Lane, London.
The Frazier house was one of eight similar houses built about that same period on the Eastern Shore. Poplar Grove, on the lower side of Skillington's Creek, not far from Frazier Flats, was one of the eight. It, like nearly all of the others of the group, has been com- pletely destroyed by fire.
Willow Grove, the former home of Matthew Driver, is perhaps better known as the Brick House Farm, long in the possession of the Horsey family at Greensboro. The house, which is one of the most pretentious of the
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early homes in the county, is kept in splendid condition by both the owners and tenants. The interior is noted for its paneled stairway winding to the third floor, a masterpiece of workmanship. To visit this house as it stands today, more than a century after the death of its builder, gives one an insight into the character of the man whose name figures so prominently in the records of early Caroline. While no carved stone marks his resting place, the house at Willow Grove remains a mon- ument to the memory of Matthew Driver.
INTERIOR OF WILLOW GROVE HOME.
Robert Hardcastle, who came to this county from England in 1748, settled in what was at that time Queen Anne's county. Later with the organization of Caro- line, his lands were included within her borders. At the Hardcastle Landing (later Brick Mill), on the west side of the Choptank nearly opposite Melvill's Landing he erected a brick mill and dwelling. The mill was torn down abont 1900 but the house is still standing.
Castle Hall, just above Goldsboro, was built by Thomas Hardcastle, a son of Robert Hardcastle of Brick Mill Landing. Mr. Hardcastle, who was a master build- er in his day, was delayed in the construction of the
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house by the outbreak of the Revolution. From its com- pletion until within the present generation the house and farm remained in the Hardcastle family.
An unusual type of house of a much later date may be found on the road leading from Brick Mill Landing to Boonsboro. It is a brick house covered with brown cement, with a tower-like design in one end. (Norman type). The house was built by a Mrs. Weatherby of Pennsylvania. It probably stands on or near the site of a former Hardcastle house, as in the rear of the dwell- ing is a burying ground with stones bearing the names of Edward and Mary Ann Hardcastle, both of whom died about 1840.
Francis Sellers, largely responsible for the estab- lishment of Hillsboro Academy, was the original owner of the light sand-colored brick house still standing at Hillsboro. It was in this house that Jesse Lee, the famous Methodist itinerant, died while visiting the Sellers family.
The house at Plain Dealing, about a half mile below Denton on the state road, was built in 1789 for a comty alms house. Later it was purchased by Mr. Dukes, who remodeled it for a private dwelling. It is one of the two old Caroline houses which has been continuously occu- pied by descendants of their early owners.
The second such house belonging to the Wright fam- ily is located between Federalsburg and Reliance. The land, granted to the Wrights by the English king for valuable services to his Majesty, lies in what is now Caroline, Dorchester and Sussex counties. The house having undergone changes by way of additions and re- pairs since its early days, is one of the best preserved of the old homes in the county.
The Captain Joseph Richardson house built in 1835 on the Denton hill was one of the finest of the older homes in the county. Its interior woodwork was of mahogany and walnut, while sills at its windows and door were of marble. Sometime during its existence it was used as a hotel, but in 1851 while occupied as a pri- vate dwelling, was totally wrecked by fire.
Daffin House in Tuckahoe Neck, built by Thomas Daffin in 1783, was the scene of many social gatherings in its early days. It is said that Andrew Jackson while visiting there met Charles Dickinson, a brother of his hostess, whom he later killed in a duel in Kentucky: A
Tenisi
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DAFFIN HOUSE.
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dungeon under the house is shown visitors as having been the place where offending slaves were confined. In later years the property passed into the hands of Wil- liam H. Thawley and is commonly called at present "Thawley House." At some time during its existence it has been covered with a coat of cement, much of which has fallen off. While this gives the exterior rather a dilapidated look, the structure remains in splendid con- dition.
Oak Lawn, in the Oakland district, was built by Benjamin Silvester in 1783 and bears his initials with that date upon one of its gables. The main building re- sembles the Frazier Flats honse, but Oak Lawn has a long wing extending to the rear, evidently built for kitchens and servants quarters. Some time after the death of its owner it became the possession of Mrs. Mary Bourne, his granddaughter, but has now passed out of the Silvester family.
Colonel William Whitely's home near Whitelysburg was burned about 1840. A well-marked family burying ground may still be seen on the farm.
Colonel William Richardson's home at Gilpin's Point was burned many years ago. There seems to be a diversity of opinion as to whether or not it was a brick building. In 1840, a large frame house was built upon the same sight by John Nichols but suffered a like fate as the Richardson house.
Previous to 1760, a small brick honse was built at Potter's Landing. Forty years later, William Potter, a grandson of the first owner, added a three story build- ing to it. Donble porches and a cupola which over- looked the Choptank were the distinguishing features of what from its completion has been known as the Potter Mansion.
Marblehead and Cedarhurst, two brick houses near Oak Lawn, in their early days belonged to John Boon, the great grandfather of Charles G. Dukes of Plain Deal- ing.
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CEDARHURST.
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THE HUGHLETTS.
The Hughletts have figured largely both politically and financially in Caroline County ever since the first William Hughlett, in 1759, arrived from Northumber- land County, Virginia, and settled near Greensboro (then in Queen Anne County).
Thomas Hughlett, eldest son of this family, came into political prominence at the time of the organization of our present county by receiving the appointment as our first sheriff. Later he became coroner, then a mem- ber of the legislature.
When the Revolutionary War broke out he entered Military service and was appointed a Captain of the Caroline County Militia and as such was active in the defense of his conntry, continuing in this service until the close of the war. In later years he was judge of the County Courts which position he held at the time of his death.
His tomb bears the following inscription telling of his merit and worth :
"In memory of Thomas Hughlett Esquire Son of William Hughlett and Mary, his wife,
who departed this life on the 26 day of March 1805, in the 65th year of his age. He was an affectionate husband, and tender par- ent, a kind master, a social and agreeable friend and an active industrious and enterprising citizen. He was honored by the free suffrage of his fellow citizens with the office of Sheriff of Caroline County then a delegate to the General Assembly of Maryland for many years. A justice of the Peace, and was at the time of his death one of the Associate Judges of the County Court. His integ- rity, justice and moderation has endeared his memory to the citi- zens of Caroline. Let his virtues be a stimulus to the descendants to preserve. The slothful will be covered with shame and none but those who persevere will reap the fruit of their labor."
Thos. Hughlett's eldest son, William Hughlett 2nd, was born Sept. 9, 1769. While he held some positions of political preferment, having been in 1816 elected to the Maryland senate and acted as president pro-tem of that body he had few aspirations in that direction.
Because of his extensive land holdings, amounting to several thousand acres, he was better known in the agricultural world and was at one time a member of the "Board of Trustees of the Maryland Agricultural So- ciety of the Eastern Shore."
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As landmarks showing the holdings of the second Win. Hughlett we have the well known line of square stone markers each having the initials W. H. cut there- on while on a few are such inscriptions as "Last grant," "Skin Ridge," "Last bit," etc. The line of markers extends from near Milford, Delaware to Whitelysburg thence through Hughes Corner above Whitelysburg and on through the Maryland line to Greensboro, while in Talbot County almost the entire neck of Bolingbroke is spanned by these markers.
On leaving Caroline this William Hughlett removed to "Warwick Manor" in Dorchester County near Secre- tary Creek. Later his home was at "Pleasant Valley" near Easton, where he died in 1845.
His eldest son, Col. William R. Hughlett of "Chan- cellors Point," was well known and highly esteemed. His daughter and grand-children are present residents of Greensboro, Caroline County, and of Talbot County, and end the long line of a well known and honorable fam- ily, whose residence in this section covers a period of more than a century and a half.
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AY :
FRAZIER FLATS HOUSE.
1
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WILLIAM FRAZIER-METHODIST ORGANIZER.
In the year 1767. Sarah Frazier of Dorchester deed- ed to her eleven year old son a tract of land in that coun- ty known as Willenborough. Three years before, upon the death of his father, Alexander Frazier, the boy had inherited the home plantation with other tracts of land lying between Skillington's and Edmondson's creeks, fronting on the Choptank river. With the formation of Caroline this land (about 1400 acres in all) was incluid- ed in the new county and became known as Frazier's Neck.
The house upon the home plantation is still stand- ing and its splendid structure carries out the tradition that it is one of eight similar dwellings built on the Eastern Shore about seventeen hundred and fifty. Its splendid furniture was made in London and until a gen- eration ago many of the original pieces remained in the house.
Of William Frazier's life we know but little until in March, 1776 when he was commissioned 3rd Lieuten- ant of the 4th Independent Company of Maryland. In December of the same year he became Ist Lieutenant in Captain Dean's company of the 5th Regiment of the Maryland Flying Camp. Later he was promoted to a captainey in the militia. In March 1783 he became a Justice of the Caroline County Court, but William Fra- zier's prominence in Caroline's affairs came neither thin his military or judicial career. He was a devoted fol- lower of Jolm Wesley and as such was largely respon- sible for the organization of Methodist societies in the lower part of the county. In his home at Frazier's Flats, the front room on the upper floor was used as a meeting place and is known to-day as the "Church Room." An outgrowth of this was Frazier's Chapel. supposedly located on the present sits of Preston, which later became Bethesda congregation and is now Preston Methodist Episcopal Church.
To Frazier's hospitable home came Jesse Lee, the Methodist circuit rider, and later Francis Asbury on his annual trips from Massachusetts to Georgia rejoiced in the rest and companionship found there. In the latter's journal we find repeatedly such notes as these :
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May, 1801-We had a long ride ( from Cambridge) to William Frazier's through dust and excessive heat. It was hard to leave. loving souls, so we tarried until morning.
April 1805. We came to brother Frazier's. The fierceness of the wind made the Choptank impassable; we had to rest awhile, and need had 1, being sore with hard service.
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