Cray House (Stevensville, Maryland) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
|
|
Cray House
|
|
|
U.S. Historic district
Contributing property |
|
_18.jpg)
House in 2007
|
|
 Location in Maryland
Location in the United States
|
|
| Location | 109 Cockey Lane, Stevensville, MD, USA |
|---|---|
| Nearest city | Stevensville |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1809 |
| Architectural style | Post & Plank Log Cabin |
| NRHP reference No. | 83002960 |
| Added to NRHP | May 9, 1983 |
The Cray House is a small, historic home in Stevensville, Maryland. It was built around 1809. This house is special because it shows a rare way of building called "post-and-plank" construction. It also helps us understand what many small homes looked like long ago. Because it's so unique, the Cray House was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. This means it's an important historical site worth protecting.
History of the Cray House
The Cray House was built in two main parts. The oldest part dates back to about 1809. The land where the house stands was once known as "Steven's Adventure." This name came from Francis Stevens, who was given the land in 1694.
The first section of the house was built using a special "post-and-plank" method. It was a one-and-a-half-story house with three sections, called "bays." Later, another section was added to the south side. This new part was made with a different building style, using a wooden frame.
When the new section was added, the original roof was changed. It became a "gambrel roof," which has two different slopes on each side. This type of roof covered the entire length of the house. The finished house looked very much like other homes built in Queen Anne's County, Maryland during the late 1700s and early 1800s.
In 1914, the house was sold at a public auction. Later, a woman named Nora Cray lived there with her nine children. The house is named after her. In 1975, Nora Cray's family gave the house and its land to the Kent Island Heritage Society. This group has carefully fixed up the house and filled it with old furniture. Now, the Cray House is open to the public as a museum.
How the House Was Built
The older part of the Cray House still looks very organized. There is a main door in the middle of both the front and back walls. On each side of the doors are windows with six small glass panes on the top and six on the bottom. The north wall, which is the end of the house, is solid with no windows. The chimney is built with exposed brick up to the second floor. Many other houses in the county have similar features.
The original house was quite small. This size was common for homes built in the Tidewater Maryland area during the 1800s. What makes the Cray House special is its "post-and-plank" construction. This building method was unusual in Tidewater Maryland. In this house, the planks run from one corner to the next. This was almost unheard of until the Cray House was discovered.
The house has a "hall-parlor plan." This means it had only one room on each floor that could be heated by a fireplace. Even though it was small, the inside had fancy decorations. These included special wooden boards, a two-piece "chair rail" (a molding along the wall), and a nice mantel around the fireplace on the first floor.
_16.jpg)
Behind the main house, there is also a smokehouse. This building was not originally built on the property. It was moved to the Cray House site because it's a rare example of a building that used to be very common in the area. Today, the smokehouse is used as a gift shop for visitors to the museum.
Why the Cray House is Important
When the Cray House was first found, people thought it was the only one left of its kind. It was believed to be a unique example of the unusual "post-and-plank" building style. But later, experts found several other buildings like it scattered around Tidewater Maryland. Sadly, most of these other buildings are not in good condition. Many are small farm buildings or have been changed into kitchen areas for bigger houses. The Cray House, along with two similar buildings in southern Maryland, are some of the only ones that are still mostly intact as homes.
The Cray House is one of many historic buildings in Stevensville. Many of these buildings are part of the Stevensville Historic District. However, the Cray House was listed separately on the National Register of Historic Places. It is located right in the middle of the historic area, on Cockey Lane. Nearby, you can find the Stevensville Train Depot, the Old Post Office building, and the Stevensville Bank.
