Mount Harmon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Mount Harmon
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 Location in Maryland
Location in the United States
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| Location | 600 Grove Neck Road, Earleville, Maryland |
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| Area | 430 acres (170 ha) |
| Built | 1788 |
| Architectural style | Georgian |
| NRHP reference No. | 74000945 |
| Added to NRHP | June 5, 1974 |
Mount Harmon is a historic home located in Earleville, Maryland, in Cecil County, Maryland. It's a beautiful old house that was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. Today, you can visit Mount Harmon and learn all about its past!
Contents
What Does Mount Harmon Look Like?
Mount Harmon is an 18th-century (which means it was built in the 1700s) brick mansion. It was built around 1788 by Sidney George. The house has a special style called Georgian.
The main entrance has a fancy door with a curved top part called a pediment. There's also a cool pineapple-shaped stone, called a keystone, above the door. These are supported by decorative columns called Ionic pilasters. Later, in the late 1920s, a wooden section was added to the side of the house.
A Look Back in Time: Mount Harmon's History
The Mount Harmon Plantation is a large estate and nature preserve that covers about 200 acres (about 0.8 square kilometers). It's located right next to the Chesapeake Bay, on a piece of land near the Sassafras River.
The land for the plantation was first given out in 1651. This was a special land grant from Lord Baltimore, who was a very important person in Maryland's early history. He gave the land to Godfrey Harmon.
From 1760 to 1810, Mount Harmon was a busy tobacco farm. It was owned by the Louttit and George families. During this time, tobacco was a very important crop, and Mount Harmon played a big role in growing and shipping it.
Over time, Mount Harmon left the family's hands and started to fall apart. But in 1963, a woman named Marguerite duPont de Villiers Boden stepped in. She was a direct descendant of the Louttit and George families. She saved the plantation and worked hard to restore the old Colonial Kitchen and the main house.
Mrs. Boden filled the house with furniture and items from the 1700s. She also fixed up the Tobacco Prize House. This building was important because it was where tobacco was prepared and stored before being shipped from the Sassafras River area. After Mrs. Boden passed away, her daughter, Kip Kelso Boden Crist, made sure the plantation would be protected for the future. She did this by starting a group called Friends of Mount Harmon, Inc.
Friends of Mount Harmon: Keeping History Alive
Today, the Friends of Mount Harmon (FOMH) is a group mostly made up of volunteers. They work to keep the plantation looking great and teach visitors about its history.
The FOMH group does many fun things:
- They give tours of the house and kitchen.
- They host special events like Colonial picnics and Yuletide (Christmas) tours.
- They run educational programs for schools, helping kids learn about the past.
- They also take care of the nature trails that wind through the property, so visitors can enjoy the outdoors.
Mount Harmon also offers water access for canoes, kayaks, and boats. The beautiful formal garden, with its neatly trimmed boxwood bushes, is a popular spot for weddings. The large grounds around the Manor House are also used for festive events and business meetings.
More Information
- Mount Harmon, Cecil County, including an old photo, from the Maryland Historical Trust.
