Wye House

Infobox_nrhp | name =Wye House
nrhp_type = nhl


caption = The "Captain's House" on Wye House Plantation
nearest_city= Easton, Maryland
locmapin = Maryland
area =
built =1781
architect= Key,Robert
architecture= Georgian, Federal
designated = April 15, 1970cite web|url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=936&ResourceType=Building
title=Wye House |accessdate=2008-06-17|work=National Historic Landmark summary listing|publisher=National Park Service]
added = April 15, 1970cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]
governing_body = Private
refnum=70000264

Wye House is a large Southern frame plantation house located in Talbot County, Maryland, seven miles (11 km) northwest of Easton. It was listed for preservation on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970.

History

The Wye plantation was settled in the 1650s by a Welsh Puritan and wealthy planter, Edward Lloyd. Around 1790, the main house was built by his great-grandson, Edward Lloyd IV.cite news |first=John |last=Ydstie |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Plantation Dig Reveals Md. Town's Painful Past |url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15383164 |work=National Public Radio |publisher= |date= October 20, 2007|accessdate=2008-02-07 ] It is cited as an example between the transition of Georgian and Federal architecture, which is attributed to builder Robert Key. Nearby the house is an orangery, a rare survival of an early garden structure where orange and lemon trees were cultivated, and which still contains its original 18th century heating system of hot air ducts. [National Register forms, including [http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceID=936&resourceType=Building online information] ]

During its peak, the plantation surrounding the house encompassed convert|42000|acre|km2 and housed over 1,000 slaves.cite news |first=John Noble |last=Wilford |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=An Abolitionist Leads the Way in Unearthing of Slaves’ Past |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/05/science/05doug.html?ex=1315108800&en=fd78b91d520f5e33&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss |work=The New York Times |publisher= |date= September 6, 2006|accessdate=2007-07-13 ] Though the land has shrunk to convert|1300|acre|km2 today, it is still owned by the descendants of Edward Lloyd, now in their 11th generation on the property. Frederick Douglass spent a few years of his life on the plantation, around the ages of seven and eight, and spoke extensively of the brutal conditions of the plantation in his autobiography, "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave".

Modern situation

The nearby hamlets of Unionville and Coppertown are where many descendents of the slaves who worked Wye House live today. This has created an interesting dynamic, considering the descendents of both the slave owners and the slaves still live within a very short distance of one another.cite news |first=Elizabeth |last=Williamson |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Unearthing Slavery, Finding Peace |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/20/AR2006072002041_2.html |work=The Washington Post |publisher= |date=July 21, 2006 |accessdate=2007-07-13 ]

The Wye House plantation gained significant media attention in 2006 for archaeological investigations led by the University of Maryland.

ee also

*Chase-Lloyd House National Historic Landmark in Annapolis, Maryland, owned by the Lloyd family 1771-1847.

References

External links

* [http://books.google.com/books?id=FKy-nXDgkrcC&pg=PA64&lpg=PA64&dq=wye+house+orangerie&source=web&ots=bEeTSQcBHO&sig=zCjJx81bE9_aROPadhtE2EhJxv0&hl=en#PPP7,M1 Where Land and Water Intertwine: An Architectural History of Talbot County]
* [http://www.marylandhistoricaltrust.net/nr/NRDetail.aspx?HDID=44&FROM=NRNHLList.aspx Wye House, Talbot County] , including undated, at Maryland Historical Trust