Historic Cemeteries Lecture

A few weeks ago, I was asked to fill in for someone giving a series of lectures on Baltimore-related topics, so of course, I said yes. The original presenter had only listed four of the six lectures, so I had to come up with two additional ones. In a vote from the class, we decided I would talk about local cemeteries. 

I've been visiting cemeteries and graveyards (not sure what the difference is) since I was a child. When I lived in the UK, I made a game of trying to find the oldest gravestone in the churchyard. 

I thought I'd share with you what is perhaps the smallest graveyard in the area. Probably the smallest cemetery in the area is the O’Grady Family Cemetery is located on Camp Fretterd, former Montrose, off Route 30, approximately two miles north of Reisterstown. 

The property was purchased in 1843 by Colonel Franklin Anderson and sold again in 1895 to Dr. Adam Kalbach, a retired physician from Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

There is only one grave marker, and the Anderson family's mausoleum. Few country estates in Baltimore County had private chapels as does the Montrose estate. This chapel is Greek Revival in character.

Montrose Chapel, completed in 1855, is a one-story fieldstone structure with a square, three-story entrance and bell tower at its south end. The bell in the tower is marked “Meneelys/West Troy, New York/1854."

A stone wall encloses the chapel yard. The yard has no particular distinctive landscape features except for two grave sites along the east side. These sites are marked: one by a small stone, the other a large masonry monument. The monument is the burial site of Franklin Anderson. The stone is for a Stirling, with no indication of who that is... perhaps an enslaved person. 

For more detailed information about the entire property, please click the Medusa listing. It is about 150 pages long and describes the entire property, which was once a reform school for girls! Also, be aware that you can visit the chapel and house, but you will be accompanied by an armed guard. Not kidding!

Baltimore's Hidden Gem Churches

On October 26 at noon, I will be giving a virtual tour of some of Baltimore's lesser-known churches. It is one of a series of presentations in conjunction with the Baltimore Architecture's Arch-tober Doors Open Baltimore events. You can find more information here. 

I will be featuring some of my long-time favorite churches,

as well as churches that I've recently discovered.

I hope that you will join me for this virtual event!

Hannah More Academy Chapel, Baltimore County

The light the other evening was just beautiful. It's that "golden hour" added to some wonderful clouds. So I thought it would be perfect to take some photographs, and remembering how similar the chapel at Hannah More Academy was to Christ Church in Owensville, Anne Arundel County. 

The chapel, which is also known as St. Michael's Church, is located on the grounds of the former Hannah More Academy in Reisterstown. Hannah More was the first Episcopal boarding school for girls in the United States. However, the church was separate from the school for many years. 

When a new church was built in the nearby Reisterstown, the attendance at St. Michael's declined, and the church was de-consecrated in 1908. But in 1928, a petition to re-open the church for use by the students was forwarded to the diocese and the church was renovated and re-opened.

By the 1960's, enrollment was starting to wane and in the 1970's, the students and the school's charter were transferred to St. Timothy's, another girls' boarding school. The chapel was de-consecrated in 1978.

It remains an excellent example of mid-19th century Gothic Revival architecture. As with Christ Church, the design is characteristic of English architect, Richard Upjohn. It is easy to see the similarities.

Link to Medusa.

St. Thomas Church, Garrison

I have been visiting St. Thomas Church in Garrison as long as I have been alive! Members of my mother's family dating back to the 1700's are buried there, as is my father, who joined the congregation when he arrived in the States from England. 

As children, we used to pick raspberries and blackberries along the verges of the cornfield, and when we'd get bored, we would poke around the graveyard, looking for family members.

Just before Christmas, several friends and I went out there to place wreaths on the graves of our ancestors, and to toast them with champagne. 

The original section of the church was built in 1743-44, and the transepts were added in 1890. The oldest graves date back to the 1700's. 

The church is basically Georgian with some Gothic influences, especially inside. It was authorized by an act of the Legislature in October of 1742, which also separated it from St. Paul's Church in Baltimore City. 

Link to Medusa.

The Stone Chapel, Reisterstown

So, I am going to start out by cheating a little bit. In December, I visited a few historic churches, and decided to add them to my Chesapeake Churches project.

The congregation at Stone Chapel United Methodist Church dates back to November of 1772.

This structure, a successor to several others, dates to 1862. It's a charming Greek Revival building, designed by James Curry who only charged $25 for the job. 

To celebrate the 125th anniversary of forming the congregation, another round of repairs was initiated in 1911. The well-remembered stars were painted on the ceiling, and leaded glass windows were installed along with carpeting and electricity. 

A wing containing meeting space was constructed in 1954, and the original rear meeting rooms were converted into a fully equipped kitchen. A historical pamphlet was printed in 1962 for the 100th anniversary of the present building. 

Repairs undertaken in 1979 resulted in patching the stucco outer walls and patching the crumbled fluting on the columns; Craftsmen could not be found to sculpt the fluting, so the columns emerged with smooth surfaces. 

Medusa file is here.