Benjamin Stoddert's HouseBenjamin Stoddert's House
He named his home "Halcyon House," and what a suitable and lovely name for one in his business, and one who had settled here after his service in the Revolution. For the halcyon was a fabled bird, whose nest floated upon the sea. It had the power of charming winds and waves, hence, "halcyon days" are days of tranquillity and peace. He had married Rebecca Loundes, the daughter of Christopher Loundes, of Bladensburg. They had several children. Mrs. Stoddert writes thusly of them on a day when they must have been particularly trying:
I wonder that you can be so anxious to see my children, for a parcel of rude, disagreeable brats as ever was born, except the two youngest.
I wonder that you can be so anxious to see my children, for a parcel of rude, disagreeable brats as ever was born, except the two youngest.
She writes another letter on the 15th of December, 1799, in which she is evidently condoling with someone, and says she "hopes Nancy was not disappointed at having a fine girl;" she is sure of "Richard's feelings on the subject, for the men always are, if they would but own it, after having one daughter, all but sons are unwelcome." She goes on to say, "But they may comfort themselves, but I will be security that the next one will be a son."
What marvelous necromancy this lady must have possessed—in her own opinion—worth a gold mine if it could really be true!
From his southern dormer windows, tradition says, Major Stoddert used to watch with his telescope for the coming of some of those ships that he and Colonel Forrest and Colonel Murdock sent out across the ocean.
On May 17, 1798, he was appointed Secretary of the Navy, being the first to hold that position, and so remained until March 1, 1807.
On May 29, 1800, he wrote thusly from Philadelphia (where he was engaged by his cabinet duties), to his near neighbor, John Templeman, on the corner just one block west of him, the old house which stood for so many, many years unoccupied:
Dear Sir:The Pres. will be at Washington by the time you receive this, or a day or two after. He proposes to stay but a littlewhile. I wish he would remain longer. This and other good things will depend on the manner of employing his time. I request, therefore, that setting Bashfulness at defiance, you will urge the Pres. to go to the balls, to ride with you in your coach, and to get Mr. Scott at least to go with you. Let the Pres. be pleased with the attention and with the country.I am resp. yrs.,Ben Stoddert.Barring accidents, I expect to be in Geo. Town the 14th of June.
Dear Sir:
The Pres. will be at Washington by the time you receive this, or a day or two after. He proposes to stay but a littlewhile. I wish he would remain longer. This and other good things will depend on the manner of employing his time. I request, therefore, that setting Bashfulness at defiance, you will urge the Pres. to go to the balls, to ride with you in your coach, and to get Mr. Scott at least to go with you. Let the Pres. be pleased with the attention and with the country.
I am resp. yrs.,
Ben Stoddert.
Barring accidents, I expect to be in Geo. Town the 14th of June.
After Benjamin Stoddert's death, this house was given by William Whann as a wedding present to his only child, Anna Maria, on her marriage to Benjamin Mackall, the son of Leonard Mackall. Their son, General William W. Mackall, was a graduate of West Point in the class with General Grant. He served with distinction in the Mexican War and later in the Confederate Army. Shortly after the close of the Civil War, General Grant gave a reception at the White House to the Aztec Society, composed of officers who served in the War with Mexico and their descendants. General Mackall went to it clad in his grey uniform and was most cordially received by his old comrades.
Still later than the Mackalls, this house was occupied by Mr. Martineau, Minister from the Netherlands, and then by the Pairo family.
To return to Mr. Templeman's house which he built about 1788. He was president of the Bank of Columbia; also an owner of ships, and, as a side issue, had:
For Sale—At John Templeman's Store.Whisky, Firkin Butter, Linseed Oil, and Flour.George Town June 20, 1800.
Those ships which carried tobacco across 3,000 milesof ocean didn't fill their holds with bricks as ballast on the way back, as we used to be told; there were too many better things needed here. And there was plenty of clay right here to burn brick. Even in the early days of Jamestown there were brick factories of which there are records and "English Brick" meant made by specifications of English brick.
The Templeman family lived here for three generations until the Civil War. Then it belonged to Franklin Steele, whose three daughters were Mrs. Morris, Mrs. Arthur Addison, and Mrs. Edward Macaulay.
"Old Mrs. Morris," as she was called, lived there many years alone and was always complaining to my father that the new building of the Capital Traction Company was undermining her house and was knocking it down. It still stands firm. It was finally "done over" a few years ago, and eventually bought by James E. Forrestal, when he became Secretary of the Navy, and was still his home when he resigned as our first Secretary of Defense, and then ended his life tragically May 12, 1949, by leaping from a window of the Naval Hospital at Bethesda.
The house was leased for two or three years to the Government and called "Prospect House." It was used by the State Department as a "guest house," where such honored persons as the Shah of Iran, Monsieur Vincent Auriol, President of France, and several Presidents of Latin American countries, and other officials, stayed. The State Department often used it for dinner parties. Its garden which used to be terraced down to the river, and quaint little gazebo are still lovely. It has recently been purchased by Representative Thurmond Chatham of North Carolina.
Home of Dr. Charles WorthingtonHome of Dr. Charles Worthington
Just across from Mr. Templeman's house on the northeast corner is one of the loveliest houses left in Georgetown. It stood for many years unchanged and unoccupied until a few years ago, when it was bought by Sir Wilmott Lewis, the representative in Washington for a long time of theLondon Times.
It was built by John Thomson Mason, (not General John Mason, whose home was on Bridge Street). It was acquired in 1810 by Dr. Charles Worthington, who came to George Town in 1783 from Sumner Hill in Anne Arundel County. He previously owned a house on the southwest corner of Bridge (M) and Market (33rd) Streets, and, later on, bought this house. He called his home "Quality Hill." His family lived there for many years until about 1856, when they moved up to the Heights and bought a house on Road Street. The family of James Kearney lived there then, until about twenty years ago. Dr. Worthington was one of the original members of Saint John's Church and first president of the District of Columbia Medical Society.
Dr. Charles Worthington was an austere man, very dignified and serious. To his latest day, he dressed in the old style; his hair in queue, knee breeches, long stockings, and buckles on his shoes. He drove a coach-and-four when going to his country place out on the Seventh Street Road near Brightwood. He was a man of great ability and zeal. He lived to be 76 years old, having practiced medicine 55 years. His son, Nicholas, followed in his profession.
Another block westward on this street stood Prospect Cottage, a charming little home where Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth lived in the sixties and wrote her manynovels—one for every year of her life. This house was for a time the home of the League of American Pen Women.
Just about a block northward stands Holy Trinity Catholic Church, referred to sometimes in old newspapers as The Roman Church. The present large edifice, facing on Lingan (36th) Street, was first built in 1849, but the original church is the small building at the back of it, high up from First (N) Street. The earliest marriage recorded there is April 6, 1795; the first baptism, May 14, 1795, signed by Reverend Francis Neale, S. J., who was the first pastor. But the lot had been purchased some years before by Bishop Carroll.
The building was erected by Alexander Doyle, putting in his own means in addition to contributions from others. This church was virtually owned by the college and was used for the college commencements until 1832.
Georgetown College, now a university, stands like a fortress at the western boundary of the town. Its lovely chimes float out over the town at every quarter of the hour. Only one of the original buildings in old, red brick still stands behind the grey stone modern halls. The north building was put up first, and by 1797, students began to lodge in it. There were 57 boarders at that time. The college was opened in 1789—its founder being John Carroll, a member of the famous Maryland family, who was consecrated Bishop at Lulworth Castle in England, but returned immediately to this country. There is a fine seated statue of him just in front of the main building. In 1806 it passed under the control of the Jesuits, and in 1815, it was raised to the rank of a university. The observatory of Georgetown, founded by Reverend James Curley in 1842, is one of the oldest in this country.
In 1830 Jonathan Elliot wrote of the college:
On entering the College, every pupil shall pay ten dollars. He shall bring a mattress, a pillow, two pillow cases, two pairs of sheets, four blankets and a counterpane, or pay $6.00 per annum for the use of bed and bedding. He must also bring with him one suit of clothes, as a uniform—which is in winter a blue cloth coat and pantaloons with a black velvet waistcoat; in summer white pantaloons with a black silk waistcoat are used. He must likewise bring with him two suits for daily wear, for which no particular color is prescribed; six shirts, six pairs of stockings, six pocket handkerchiefs, three pairs of shoes, a hat and a cloak or great coat, also a silver spoon. These articles if not brought by the student will be furnished by the College and included in the first bill.The pension for board, washing, mending and mending materials, use of books (philosophical and mathematical excepted), pens, ink, and writing paper, slates and pencil, is $150. Medical aid and medicine, unless parents choose to run the risk of a doctor's bill in case of sickness, $3.00 per annum. All charges must be paid half-yearly in advance.With regard to pocket money it is desired that all students should be placed on an equality and that it should not exceed 12-1/2 cents per week; and whatever is allowed must be deposited in the hands of the directors of the College. Half-boarders are received on the usual terms, viz. $5 entrance and $65 for board per annum.Day scholars $5 for fuel and servants, as no charge is made for tuition. The College has been established 45 years and not a single death has taken place among the students.
On entering the College, every pupil shall pay ten dollars. He shall bring a mattress, a pillow, two pillow cases, two pairs of sheets, four blankets and a counterpane, or pay $6.00 per annum for the use of bed and bedding. He must also bring with him one suit of clothes, as a uniform—which is in winter a blue cloth coat and pantaloons with a black velvet waistcoat; in summer white pantaloons with a black silk waistcoat are used. He must likewise bring with him two suits for daily wear, for which no particular color is prescribed; six shirts, six pairs of stockings, six pocket handkerchiefs, three pairs of shoes, a hat and a cloak or great coat, also a silver spoon. These articles if not brought by the student will be furnished by the College and included in the first bill.
The pension for board, washing, mending and mending materials, use of books (philosophical and mathematical excepted), pens, ink, and writing paper, slates and pencil, is $150. Medical aid and medicine, unless parents choose to run the risk of a doctor's bill in case of sickness, $3.00 per annum. All charges must be paid half-yearly in advance.
With regard to pocket money it is desired that all students should be placed on an equality and that it should not exceed 12-1/2 cents per week; and whatever is allowed must be deposited in the hands of the directors of the College. Half-boarders are received on the usual terms, viz. $5 entrance and $65 for board per annum.
Day scholars $5 for fuel and servants, as no charge is made for tuition. The College has been established 45 years and not a single death has taken place among the students.
This was in spite of the fact that the young men, winter and summer, washed at the pump!
Early in 1861 several volunteer regiments, including the 69th New York and the 79th Pennsylvania Regiments,arrived in Georgetown. The 69th was mustered into service in the grounds of Georgetown College, where it was afterwards quartered. The 79th Pennsylvania Regiment was clad in their distinctive Scottish kilts, plaids, and striped stockings, and had a band of pipers at their head.
The Georgetown College students showed where their sympathies were by an ostentatious display of a badge fastened upon the lapel of the coat—tri-color for the Union, and blue for disunion.
Just west of the college used to be a pond which was a very popular resort for skaters in the winter season.
Not far away is another well-known Catholic institution, for the education of the other sex—the oldest Visitation Convent in the country—having on its list of alumnæ many well-known names.
When Father Neale came from Philadelphia to George Town in 1798 to become president of the college, he found living on Fayette (35th) Street, near by, three ladies belonging to the Order of Poor Clares. This order was founded in Assisi long ago by Sister Clare, a devoted friend of Saint Francis of Assisi, and is similar to the Franciscans. The three ladies were members of the French nobility who had been driven from their convent in France during the Revolution in 1793 and, coming to this country, had set up a little convent not far from the college. They attempted to keep a school as a means of support, but had a very difficult time. Once, it is told, they were reduced to such poverty that they had to sell a parrot, which they had as a pet, in order to save themselves from starvation. These women, barefooted, according to the rule of their order, came of noble blood andhad been born to luxury. One of them was Mary de la Marche, who advertised in the newspaper salves and eyewashes for sale.
In 1799 Father Neale sent back to Philadelphia for three devoted religious friends from Ireland, who wished to found a convent. They were Alice Tabor, Maria McDermott, and Louise Sharpe. For a few months they boarded with the Poor Clares, but a little later Father Neale bought a house and lot nearby and installed them in it. They became known as The Pious Ladies. On May 18, 1801, Mary de la Marche advertised the two houses of the Poor Clares for sale, but apparently they did not sell them at that time, for, in 1804, after the death of the Abbess, Madame de la Rochefoucault, who succeeded her, sold the convent to Bishop Neale, and the remaining ladies returned to France.
The Pious Ladies slowly increased in numbers, keeping their school and struggling against poverty, all the time endeavoring to become established as members of the Visitation Order. At last their hope and ambition came to pass, and, in 1816, they were regularly established as the Georgetown Visitation Convent.
Across the street from the Convent grounds, a lovely big meadow until it was partly taken over in World War II for a housing project, are the Volta Bureau for the Deaf and two interesting houses.
Mrs. Gilbert Grosvenor, the daughter of Alexander Graham Bell, has very kindly given me this wonderful letter about them:
My grandfather, Alexander Melville Bell, lived on the corner of 35th Street and Volta Place in the house since occupied by Mr. Walter Lippman, (but not at present).Following my father's removal to Washington in about 1879, his father and mother changed their residence from Brantford, Ontario, to Georgetown. With them were their three nieces, the Misses Symonds, who were my father's double cousins. At the back of the 35th Street property was an old stable which my father converted into a laboratory, and he carried on experiments there almost until the time of his death. He would come out nearly every afternoon to his laboratory and visit with his parents before returning home in the evening.It was also our custom to have dinner with my grandfather and grandmother on Sundays. They were very jolly times and my grandfather always had a jar of candy for the grandchildren and games which we could all play. He was very popular with all the young people, being jolly, and looked a little like the usual idea of Santa Claus, with his gray beard and hair.Shortly after my grandfather came to live in Georgetown, his brother, Mr. David Charles Bell and Mrs. Bell, followed him from Brantford to Washington and bought the house next door. With them at that time, keeping house for them, was Miss Aileen Bell. She was noted in the family as having turned down Bernard Shaw's offer of marriage in her young days, Bernard Shaw having been a great friend of her brother, Mr. Chichester Bell, and having visited with the family when they lived in Dublin, Ireland. Mr. David Bell had in his young days moved to Dublin to carry on the career of his father, Alexander Bell, as a teacher of elocution. His wife had a school for young ladies. Another son of the family was Mr. Charles J. Bell, later president of the American Security and Trust Company, who later married my mother's sister, Roberta Hubbard, and came to reside in Washington.Mr. David Charles Bell was a very handsome man, but very irascible, and the young people were quite afraid of him. He and his brother had numerous vehement arguments as to whether Shakespeare or Bacon wrote Shakespeare's plays. My grandmother was eleven or twelve years older than her husband, so my grandfather did most of the marketing, and Iunderstand it used to be quite a sight on Saturday morning to see the two old gentlemen, Mr. David and Mr. Melville Bell, going to market with baskets over their arms. Notwithstanding all their arguments, they were very devoted to each other.Miss Aileen Bell was very musical and was one of the founders of the Friday Morning Music Club and other musical clubs. She was the organist and choir leader in Christ Church, Georgetown. She was always very punctilious in her attendance and I remember her talking about her church.Mr. and Mrs. Charles Bell and their family also used to come out on Sundays to see their parents, but they usually came to supper. The family as a whole were very devoted. Mr. Chichester Bell, you may recall, was the co-inventor with my father and Mr. Tainter of the phonograph. The wax records that are used today are their invention and their company, the Columbia Phonograph Company, operated under their patents.After my grandfather's death, the house came into my father's possession, and he gave it to the American Association to Promote the Teaching of Speech to the Deaf, now called the Volta Speech Association. It was used for a time as the home of the Superintendent. My father still continued to use his laboratory. Some years later, when the Association needed money, it was sold and the proceeds used to carry on the work of the Association. My father was very much interested in the work of the Volta Bureau and one winter, when my mother was away, he lived at the Volta Bureau, compiling some of his scientific data. He had a way when he became absorbed in work of forgetting to eat or sleep, and the person that brought his dinner tray would often find his luncheon tray untouched.
My grandfather, Alexander Melville Bell, lived on the corner of 35th Street and Volta Place in the house since occupied by Mr. Walter Lippman, (but not at present).
Following my father's removal to Washington in about 1879, his father and mother changed their residence from Brantford, Ontario, to Georgetown. With them were their three nieces, the Misses Symonds, who were my father's double cousins. At the back of the 35th Street property was an old stable which my father converted into a laboratory, and he carried on experiments there almost until the time of his death. He would come out nearly every afternoon to his laboratory and visit with his parents before returning home in the evening.
It was also our custom to have dinner with my grandfather and grandmother on Sundays. They were very jolly times and my grandfather always had a jar of candy for the grandchildren and games which we could all play. He was very popular with all the young people, being jolly, and looked a little like the usual idea of Santa Claus, with his gray beard and hair.
Shortly after my grandfather came to live in Georgetown, his brother, Mr. David Charles Bell and Mrs. Bell, followed him from Brantford to Washington and bought the house next door. With them at that time, keeping house for them, was Miss Aileen Bell. She was noted in the family as having turned down Bernard Shaw's offer of marriage in her young days, Bernard Shaw having been a great friend of her brother, Mr. Chichester Bell, and having visited with the family when they lived in Dublin, Ireland. Mr. David Bell had in his young days moved to Dublin to carry on the career of his father, Alexander Bell, as a teacher of elocution. His wife had a school for young ladies. Another son of the family was Mr. Charles J. Bell, later president of the American Security and Trust Company, who later married my mother's sister, Roberta Hubbard, and came to reside in Washington.
Mr. David Charles Bell was a very handsome man, but very irascible, and the young people were quite afraid of him. He and his brother had numerous vehement arguments as to whether Shakespeare or Bacon wrote Shakespeare's plays. My grandmother was eleven or twelve years older than her husband, so my grandfather did most of the marketing, and Iunderstand it used to be quite a sight on Saturday morning to see the two old gentlemen, Mr. David and Mr. Melville Bell, going to market with baskets over their arms. Notwithstanding all their arguments, they were very devoted to each other.
Miss Aileen Bell was very musical and was one of the founders of the Friday Morning Music Club and other musical clubs. She was the organist and choir leader in Christ Church, Georgetown. She was always very punctilious in her attendance and I remember her talking about her church.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Bell and their family also used to come out on Sundays to see their parents, but they usually came to supper. The family as a whole were very devoted. Mr. Chichester Bell, you may recall, was the co-inventor with my father and Mr. Tainter of the phonograph. The wax records that are used today are their invention and their company, the Columbia Phonograph Company, operated under their patents.
After my grandfather's death, the house came into my father's possession, and he gave it to the American Association to Promote the Teaching of Speech to the Deaf, now called the Volta Speech Association. It was used for a time as the home of the Superintendent. My father still continued to use his laboratory. Some years later, when the Association needed money, it was sold and the proceeds used to carry on the work of the Association. My father was very much interested in the work of the Volta Bureau and one winter, when my mother was away, he lived at the Volta Bureau, compiling some of his scientific data. He had a way when he became absorbed in work of forgetting to eat or sleep, and the person that brought his dinner tray would often find his luncheon tray untouched.
John ThrelkeldJohn Threlkeld
Just north of the convent grounds is the site of the estate of Berleith, which had been built by Henry Threlkeld. He had, in 1751, married Mrs. Mary Hopkins, a daughter of Dr. Gustavus Brown of Maryland, and widow of Reverend Matthew Hopkins. Henry Threlkeld died in 1781, his widow in 1801. Their one child, John, wasmarried in 1787 to Elizabeth Ridgely, of Maryland. Two years before his marriage he visited England, one object of his trip being to secure a legacy which he converted into gold and brought back with him. He landed in England at Dover, which he described as being "about the size of George Town," the voyage having taken nearly two months—from October 6th to December 3rd. In his journal he wrote of having gone to the House of Commons to hear "Mr. Pitt open the budgett, Mr. Fox followed, and then Mr. Sheridan replied to Mr. Pitt."
Of John Threlkeld, an old paper states that "he was well and very widely known as a fine scholar and a man of great benevolence." He was mayor of George Town in 1793 and a personal friend of Thomas Jefferson. He was remembered as a handsome figure on horseback, even in his late years, and his love of following the hounds is a family tradition. The comments made by him in this connection during his stay in England are interesting. After describing the journey by coach past fine estates with "one-half the fields as green as spring with grass," he added, "and but one horse have I seen in the course of thirty miles at pasture, and here I must take notice of their boasting in America of their hunters leaping the five-bar gates." He goes on to explain how the measurements were taken, and concludes, "but still their horses vastly surpass ours."
John and Elizabeth Threlkeld had four children, but the only son died in infancy, so the name disappeared, and the family is represented only by the descendants of their daughter, Jane, who married John Cox.
Colonel John CoxColonel John Cox
OON the northeast corner of First Street (N) and Frederick (34th) Street stands the row of houses which John Cox built. Colonel Cox was for many years most prominent in all the affairs of Georgetown, serving as its Mayor longer than any other one man from 1823 to 1845—22 years. John Cox was of English descent. He was born in 1775 during the Revolution, was the youngest of four children, and being left an orphan as a small child, was raised by an uncle who was a banker in Baltimore. He later lived for a while in Philadelphia, and from there came to Georgetown. He first married Matilda Smith, a sister of Clement Smith, well known as the first cashier of the Farmers' & Mechanics Bank, later its president. They had three children, one of whom was named Clement. By his second marriage to Jane Threlkeld he had seven children.
ON the northeast corner of First Street (N) and Frederick (34th) Street stands the row of houses which John Cox built. Colonel Cox was for many years most prominent in all the affairs of Georgetown, serving as its Mayor longer than any other one man from 1823 to 1845—22 years. John Cox was of English descent. He was born in 1775 during the Revolution, was the youngest of four children, and being left an orphan as a small child, was raised by an uncle who was a banker in Baltimore. He later lived for a while in Philadelphia, and from there came to Georgetown. He first married Matilda Smith, a sister of Clement Smith, well known as the first cashier of the Farmers' & Mechanics Bank, later its president. They had three children, one of whom was named Clement. By his second marriage to Jane Threlkeld he had seven children.
In the War of 1812 he served as a Colonel. He was a large property owner in Georgetown, besides being a well-to-do merchant. He built the row of houses on First (N) Street, called by his name and lived for a while in the house on the corner. That must have been during the period of his first marriage, for after Jane Threlkeld became his wife they built a lovely house on part of the Berleith estate, next door to the old Threlkeld which had been burned, and called it The Cedars. It stood where theWestern High School now stands, and it is difficult to realize now that there, in my memory, was a home surrounded by a mass of trees and vines and was most delightfully private and charming. It was a quaint and lovely old cream-colored mansion, a portico on its north front, two long piazzas as usual, along the south side of the house. In later years I myself went there to the private school kept by the Misses Earle, whose father, George Earle purchased the place.
Colonel Cox was celebrated as a dandy. "He would saunter down town in silk stockings and pumps, not getting a spot upon himself, while other men would be up to their ankles in mud, for in those days there were no pavements." Stepping-stones were placed at the corners of the streets standing rather high above the roadway to facilitate the pedestrians.
Colonel Cox had moved up to The Cedars when, as mayor in 1824, it fell to his lot to act as host for Georgetown to the Marquis de Lafayette, when he made his famous visit.
A new arrival was imminent in the Cox family, so it was not advisable to have the party, which he wished to give, at his home. Consequently, he used one of these houses which was vacant at that time, number 3337; had it furnished from top to bottom, his eldest daughter, Sally, acting in her mother's place as hostess for the distinguished party invited to meet the hero of the hour.
It is said that one young lady in her enthusiasm fell upon her knees before the Marquis and impressed a kiss upon his hands. There was a fashion in those days of decorating the floor by painting a pattern around theedges with colored chalks—garlands of roses entwined with the flags of the two countries. A marvelous supper was served; it is said it included 600 reed birds. It is to be hoped it also included other things more substantial than this high-sounding but sparsely covered game.
The coach of Colonel Cox was at the disposal of the honored guest during the period of his stay. When he made his formal entry into the District of Columbia, having come by way of Baltimore, he was escorted by a troop of cavalry from Montgomery County commanded by my grandfather, Captain Henry Dunlop, a Georgetonian, then farming the family plantation, Hayes, seven miles north of town.
Tradition says that number 3337 had a tunnel leading to the river. Some such large opening was discovered when the owner excavated recently to make a pool in the garden. In 1860 this house was the home of William A. Gordon, for many years chief of the quartermaster's department. It was from here that his eldest son of the same name left to enter the Confederate Army. William A. Gordon, senior, born in Baltimore, had gone to the Military Academy at West Point, and while there a terrible cry arose about the poor quality of food furnished for the cadets. Mr. Gordon was one of the three young men selected by the corps to go to Washington to interview the President on the subject. The answer he gave them was that he would see that conditions at the Academy were remedied, but his advice to them was to send in their resignations immediately, as there would be no career there for them after this.
From about 1865 to 1892 Mr. and Mrs. William Laird,Jr., made this house their home. Mr. Laird was for forty years cashier of the Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank, and was greatly respected. When he resigned he was presented by the officials with a very handsome silver punch bowl, ladle and tray and a large silver loving cup. He died suddenly a month or two after giving up his business and his widow did not survive him long. Mrs. Laird was Anna Key Ridgely, a charming person. They had no children, nor had his brother, who never married, so this name, long so honored here, has disappeared from Georgetown.
To return to the corner house. It was for several years the home of Commodore Charles Morris, one of the eminent officers of the early U. S. Navy. He made a remarkable record in the War with Tripoli, his earliest achievement being on the occasion of the recapture and destruction of the frigatePhiladelphiain the harbor of Tripoli in 1804. Midshipman Morris, then nineteen years old, volunteered for the service and was the first to stand on the deck of thePhiladelphiaand commence the work of destruction. At the beginning of the War of 1812 he held the rank of lieutenant—and became executive officer of theConstitution, Captain Isaac Hull being in command.
On the 17th of July, 1812, a very calm day, the frigate met a fleet of British vessels, and the enemy thought they had an easy prize, but by a combination of towing and kedging by means of theConstitution'sboats and anchors, an extraordinary escape was made which, as Captain Hull stated at the time, was conceived by Lieutenant Morris. Its successful execution commanded the admiration of his countrymen and won the applause even of the British officers.
Commodore Morris was chosen to escort Lafayette back to France on the U. S. S.Brandywine, and while on a visit to the general his portrait was painted by Amy Shaffer and sent back to Mrs. Morris as a gift from the Marquis.
In 1842 the property was bought by James Keith who was a great friend of General Washington, Mr. Keith's daughter married Mr. Forrest, and their son French Forrest was an officer in the United States Navy, but like many others in this part of the world, went into the Southern Navy during the Civil War. At the time of his funeral W. W. Corcoran, who was a very intimate friend, was a pall-bearer. In those days it was the style for the mourners to wear a long streamer of crêpe around their hats and hanging down a foot or two. Little Douglas Forrest, the son of the deceased, began to cry, saying he "wanted some funeral on his hat." Mr. Corcoran took him in hand and insisted that he should have his wish and be arrayed like the other mourners.
In the other houses of that row lived, at number 3335, just before the Civil War, a family named Semmes from New Orleans who had several daughters considered very beautiful. Cora Semmes became the wife of Colonel Joseph Ives, a brilliant young engineer officer of the United States Army, who, although of Northern birth, espoused the Southern cause. He was put on General Lee's staff, and later transferred to be aide-de-camp to Jefferson Davis where, in Richmond he and his wife became prominent and useful in entertaining distinguished foreigners, as she was noted for her charm as well as her beauty.
In number 3333 Judge Robert Ould resided. His fatherhad been one of the founders of the Lancastrian School. Mattie Ould, whose name still is a synonym for grace, beauty and wit, spent her childhood here. After the Oulds went to Richmond this house was for a time the home of Henry Addison, while he was mayor. Later on the Cropleys lived in it.
William Hunter lived for a great many years in number 3331, when he was Assistant Secretary of State. Women of my generation still remember him for his love of little children and his gifts to them of toys and goodies.
Across on the southeast corner of First (N) Street and Frederick (34th) Street at 3340 is the house which Harry Hopkins, the great friend of Franklin D. Roosevelt, bought and moved to with his new wife and his daughter Diana, when they left the White House where they had been living for a year or more. This was his home at the time of his death.
On this street used to live the Marburys before they moved to The Heights, and also the Wheatleys of whom there were several households in Georgetown in the latter part of the last century.
A block eastward on the same side of the street is another row of charming old houses, built about 1800 by Colonel James Smith, "lately returned from the Revolutionary War." In the one on the corner of First (N) and Potomac Streets used to live Mrs. Gannt and her daughter Clare and Mrs. Gannt's sister Mrs. Smith. I think they were descendants of the builder of the row. Their old home was for a time occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Blair Thaw, the former a poet, the latter an artist.
Third from the corner at 3259, in the middle of the 19thcentury lived Dr. Lewis Ritchie who had an extensive practice. I think he was the son of Dr. Joshua Ritchie. This house was the home of Hon. and Mrs. Lewis A. Douglas when he was the sole representative in Congress from Arizona. Later he was Director of the Budget and within recent years Ambassador to the Court of St. James. This house is now the home of Mrs. McCook Knox who is very well known in connection with the study of Early American Portraits and has been connected with the Frick Art Reference Library of New York since its inception. In the front room of the attic of 3259 were doors of rough hewn wood with old iron bolts leading into rooms of the two adjoining houses. The story is that in the War of 1812 this row of houses used to be watched. A soldier would be stationed on the corner, but the "questionable person" never emerged, he could escape through the attic rooms and come out at the end of the row.
No. 3257 is now the home of Hon. and Mrs. Richard B. Wigglesworth of Massachusetts.
The old home of the Shoemaker family was at 3261. While he was Assistant Secretary of War it was the home of Hon. and Mrs. F. Trubee Davison and is now the home of Hon. and Mrs. James J. Wadsworth of New York.
All of this part of Georgetown west of High Street (Wisconsin Avenue) used to be called Holy Hill, because of the great number of Irish who dwelt in the neighborhood. On Saint Patrick's Day there were parades and fights, and all kinds of excitement.
There were also a good many respectable colored Catholics, and near here, on Potomac Street, dwelt a family of Coakleys. Magdalen Coakley thought she wasthe reincarnation of the Virgin Mary. She got herself up to look like the Virgin, in sweeping white robes and a sky-blue veil and cloak. She was not a very dark negress and had a fine countenance and striking figure. She used to go about the streets blessing little children and wanting to baptize them, followed, of course, by a string of boys making fun of her. She would go up to Trinity Church and stand by the door; but once she wanted to help the priest give Communion, so they had to forbid her coming. Of course the poor soul thought she was being persecuted, but she took it in a Christian manner and prayed all the harder, on the street and everywhere. She lived to be an old woman still wearing her picturesque costume.
Her sister, Frances, was nurse for three generations for the Hein family whose home was at number 3249 N Street, now entirely changed by its modernized roof and steps.
Samuel Hein had emigrated from Königsberg, Germany, as a young man, and had become an American citizen. He was fifty-six years in the Coast and Geodetic Survey, retiring as its disbursing officer. He was an ardent Union man, and during the four years of the Civil War kept the Stars and Stripes flying from one of his windows. All through the two terrible days after the Battle of Bull Run, when the Northern troops were streaming through Georgetown, Mr. Hein maintained a soup kitchen for the soldiers in his back yard. His wife was the daughter of John Simpson who lived on the corner of High Street (Wisconsin Avenue) and West (P) Streets. Her brother, James Alexander Simpson, was a rather well-known portrait painter. They were quite a musical and artistic family.
One son Charles Hein was an artist and had his studio in a little frame house still standing on 31st (Congress) behind another house, opposite the post office. There he took pupils. He was very picturesque in appearance, tall and dark, wore a drooping mustache, low collar with flowing black cravat and wide-brimmed black hat and cape.
Another son Col. O. L. Hein in an interesting book calledMemories of Long Agotells this story:
One day in the spring of 1861, as I was passing the residence of the pastor of St. John's Church, The Rev. Mr. Tillinghast, quite near our house, I was attracted by the sight of a dashing young Cavalry officer, who was showing off the paces of his handsome black charger to the Minister. I lingered nearby, greatly enjoying the equestrian performance, and upon its conclusion I was informed by the clergyman, that the name of the young officer was William Orton Williams, and that he was the military secretary of Lt. General Winfield Scott.In the following year I was shocked to read in a local newspaper the account of the trial and conviction of Williams and his cousin, Lt. W. G. Peter (resident of Georgetown) as spies under the assumed names of General W. C. Auton and Major Dunlop, of the Union Army, by a drumhead Court Martial, and their conviction and execution by hanging. In recent years I was informed by my wife's mother, Mrs. Ross, that she remembered Williams quite well, and that he was engaged to Miss Anne Lee, the daughter of General R. E. Lee; but that she died, on the outbreak of the Civil War. Mrs. Ross was a cousin of General Lee, and a freqeunt visitor at Arlington before the secession of Virginia.Williams was of distinguished ancestry, the son of Capt. William G. Williams, a graduate of West Point of the class of 1822, who was mortally wounded at the Battle of Monterey, Mexico, while serving on the staff of General Zachary Taylor, and his mother, America Peter was the daughter of ThomasPeter, a prominent citizen of Georgetown, whose wife Martha Parke Custis was the granddaughter of Mrs. George Washington and an aunt of Mary Custis the wife of General R. E. Lee.
One day in the spring of 1861, as I was passing the residence of the pastor of St. John's Church, The Rev. Mr. Tillinghast, quite near our house, I was attracted by the sight of a dashing young Cavalry officer, who was showing off the paces of his handsome black charger to the Minister. I lingered nearby, greatly enjoying the equestrian performance, and upon its conclusion I was informed by the clergyman, that the name of the young officer was William Orton Williams, and that he was the military secretary of Lt. General Winfield Scott.
In the following year I was shocked to read in a local newspaper the account of the trial and conviction of Williams and his cousin, Lt. W. G. Peter (resident of Georgetown) as spies under the assumed names of General W. C. Auton and Major Dunlop, of the Union Army, by a drumhead Court Martial, and their conviction and execution by hanging. In recent years I was informed by my wife's mother, Mrs. Ross, that she remembered Williams quite well, and that he was engaged to Miss Anne Lee, the daughter of General R. E. Lee; but that she died, on the outbreak of the Civil War. Mrs. Ross was a cousin of General Lee, and a freqeunt visitor at Arlington before the secession of Virginia.
Williams was of distinguished ancestry, the son of Capt. William G. Williams, a graduate of West Point of the class of 1822, who was mortally wounded at the Battle of Monterey, Mexico, while serving on the staff of General Zachary Taylor, and his mother, America Peter was the daughter of ThomasPeter, a prominent citizen of Georgetown, whose wife Martha Parke Custis was the granddaughter of Mrs. George Washington and an aunt of Mary Custis the wife of General R. E. Lee.
Just next door to this house is the site where, even before 1780, stood the Columbian Academy of which Mr. Rogers was the principal and of which Dr. Balch became the head in 1781. It was a large, two-story frame building, having a high entrance porch, where hung the bell. It stood on a hill which commanded a fine view of the river from the study rooms upstairs. Adjacent to the schoolroom was a large garden in the middle of which was a jessamine arbor. Two of General Washington's nephews were students of the school and lived with the principal.
Here was housed the Columbian Library which was opened in 1803. In later years the present building was erected but having a very different appearance. Here lived Hugh Caperton a well known lawyer.
I myself lived here as a very small child when I was two or three years old and one of my very first memories is being dared by my brothers and sisters to jump off the stone wall fronting the street, about four feet high. I felt as if I had to jump from the Washington Monument, but I did it, with no ill effects.
It was after that the home, for many years, of the Barbers. Old Mrs. Barber moved there with her grandchildren when she sold her home where the United States Naval Observatory now stands. She was the daughter of Major Adlum whose home was The Vineyard where the Bureau of Standards is now. His place was well named for he was a great horticulturist, the first to domesticate the Catawba grape. It grew wild in North Carolina.
AACROSS High Street (Wisconsin Avenue) along Gay (N) Street on the northwest corner of Congress (31st) is the Baptist Church which has just celebrated its 75th anniversary. It was originally a small frame building, up on a bank. The present building was erected in 1890.
ACROSS High Street (Wisconsin Avenue) along Gay (N) Street on the northwest corner of Congress (31st) is the Baptist Church which has just celebrated its 75th anniversary. It was originally a small frame building, up on a bank. The present building was erected in 1890.
On the southwest corner of Gay (N) and Congress (31st) Streets stood, not so very many years ago, an attractive old white house with long porches, tiers of them, across the back overlooking a garden. I think the present building is what it was converted into in the period that did the best to rob Georgetown of all its charm.
Here, in 1795, Dr. James Heighe Blake built his home. He was a very eminent citizen, a member of the first vestry of Saint John's Church, one of the very first to advocate schools of the Lancastrian system and a reformatory, and the very first person to suggest a health officer for the City of Washington. He moved over to the city and became its third mayor from 1813 to 1817. His daughter, Glorvina, married William A. Gordon, senior, of whom I have already spoken.
Here, at one time, lived Judge Walter Cox, grandson of Colonel John Cox. His wife was a daughter of Judge Dunlop. Still later, the school of Miss Jennie and Miss Lucy Stephenson was here, which was well attended in the seventies and eighties. In the spring of 1875, a romantic elopement took place. A young girl of sixteen, an orphan, who was said to be "an heiress," went off to Baltimore very early one morning with the son of a minister who taught Latin in the school.
When the pupils came that morning, they sensed the excitement and gathered in groups in the gallery. Eventually, the news leaked out and the chief topic was that the young lady took no baggage, not even a nightgown, in her flight.
Just below here, on Congress (31st) Street, in the latter part of the last century lived a lady much beloved by rich and poor. She was the first person to conceive the idea of a diet kitchen for the needy. She had not much of this world's goods, so she went daily to the different butchers who gave her scraps of meat which she cooked, and had continually on hand jars of "beef tea." All the doctors knew where to apply when they had patients who were in need of it. She was the widow of Captain Charles Carroll Simms, an officer of the old navy who went with the Confederacy, and at the famous battle in Hampton Roads, was second in command of theMerrimac, and in command after the chief officer was killed. She was Elizabeth Nourse, daughter of Major Charles Joseph Nourse, of The Highlands.
Next door, below Mrs. Simms' house, stands the Methodist Protestant Church which not long ago celebrated its one hundredth anniversary. The lot for it was purchased in April, 1829, but the founders for a year or two previous to that had been worshipping in the Presbyterian Church building, Saint John's or the Lancastrian schoolroom. It is now a Christian Science Church.
Across the street from the church, next door to the Post Office, the tall brick house is where a family lived which in the nineties was a mystery to Georgetown—the Oueston family—father, mother, and daughter. No one knew what was the father's business, and no one ever saw the mother out, but it was rumored that she came from South America, was of royal blood, and had a throne on which she sat, dressed accordingly. The daughter was known then, and for many years afterwards, as "the girl of a thousand curls." She was tall and slender, and her magnificent suit of dark hair was a mass of curls, making her head look like "a bushel basket." She wore ankle-length dresses of a style totally different from what every other girl wore: white stockings, when all of us wore black, and black slippers, laced up with narrow black ribbons.
And then up to the northeast corner of Gay (N) and Congress (31st) Streets, to the tall yellow house, now an apartment house. For many years it was at the home of the Snyders. Dr. John M. Snyder died at the age of 36, in the enjoyment of a fine reputation in his profession, of an unusual accident.
The story is told by Dr. Samuel Busey, in hisPersonal Reminiscences:
Dr. Snyder had bought a farm called "Greenwood" a little way out of town toward Tenallytown, and one afternoon at Dr. Busey's home, "Belvoir," now the Beauvoir School, was telling Dr. Busey how he was enjoying pruning the old oak trees on his place of dead wood. Dr. Busey warned him that he was engaging in a dangerous amusement and related the story of how a hired man of his, doing such a job, had had a bad fall, but, fortunately, without injury.Two or three days later, Dr. Busey was summoned to "Greenwood," where he found Dr. Snyder dying from justsuch an accident. The branch of the tree he had been sawing off was hanging by a splintered sliver, too weak to support its weight and, in swinging to the ground, had knocked away the ladder on which Dr. Snyder was standing.
Dr. Snyder had bought a farm called "Greenwood" a little way out of town toward Tenallytown, and one afternoon at Dr. Busey's home, "Belvoir," now the Beauvoir School, was telling Dr. Busey how he was enjoying pruning the old oak trees on his place of dead wood. Dr. Busey warned him that he was engaging in a dangerous amusement and related the story of how a hired man of his, doing such a job, had had a bad fall, but, fortunately, without injury.
Two or three days later, Dr. Busey was summoned to "Greenwood," where he found Dr. Snyder dying from justsuch an accident. The branch of the tree he had been sawing off was hanging by a splintered sliver, too weak to support its weight and, in swinging to the ground, had knocked away the ladder on which Dr. Snyder was standing.
His wife was Sophy Tayloe, a member of the well-known family of the Octagon House in Washington, and beautiful old Mount Airy in Virginia. As a widow in her old age, she had a steady admirer, a general, who came every afternoon at the same time in his Victoria, and took her to drive. I can see her now, a small, slight figure in her cape, and little black bonnet tied under her chin, and holding one of those quaint little ruffled sunshades to keep the sun out of her eyes.
She had one daughter, Miss Annie, who had the loveliest rosy cheeks (no rouge in those days), who never married. One son, Bladen, was an artist, and he used to be a familiar sight with his camp-stool and easel on the streets, painting.
Georgetown was not so "arty" in Bladen Snyder's day, unfortunately, so he was considered very "odd."
The other son, Dr. Arthur Snyder, was a fine surgeon, and an ardent horseman.
Not long ago I was being shown photographs of belles and beaux of the eighties and nineties in Georgetown. Among them were several pictures of the crews of the Columbia Boat Club, and one of the "four" was young Dr. Snyder, whose home this was.