Owensville came to life in the early 1800’s when Isaac Owens established a store at a crossroads near the West River of the Chesapeake Bay.
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1860 Martenet Tax Map of Owensville |
By the 1850’s, the crossroads had become a small metropolis, with two general stores, a wheel-wright shop, a harness shop, a blacksmith, a tailor, a cobbler, a post office, two churches, a parsonage, elementary school, Masonic lodge, and The West River Classical Institute of higher learning .
The W River Institute had day and boarding students.
Its catalog described Owensville as a place of great morality where “the visits of the inebriate are as rare as the eclipses of the sun.”
The Institute closed in 1860,
and Christ Church began using the building as a Parish Hall for community suppers, minstrel shows, piano recitals, and Christmas entertainments.
Sunday Schoolers used the grounds for Easter egg hunts and games of London Bridge and Blind Man’s Buff.
The building was finally torn down in 1923.
"For awhile the tall gray building
was missed,
and then forgotten."
(Kate Chew)
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| West River Classical Institute 1851 |
I recently purchased a home in Lothian. I have heard/read that part of the original house was removed and relocated to Owensville where it still stands today. The Lothian home is historic. Do you have any knowledge of this house/property in Owensville?
ReplyDeleteKate Chew was born in Owensville in 1908 in a house referred to as the "Tall House".
DeleteKate wrote in her memoir:
"The Tall House had been part of the main building at Tudor Hall in Lothian. It had been bought by the Hopkins family as an investment, and Mr Hopkins, my parents' landlord, had it moved when a new wing was added to the old home of the Estep and Hall family. He had it placed on land he owned across the lane from his old home.
"The Tall House was named so by Daddy because that's just what it was. Three floors high, it appeared to be much higher, for it was only one room deep. Inside, a narrow front living room was on the left. Steep stairs led to the second floor, the bedroom over the living room. A tiny front bedroom looked out on the front yard. On the third floor was another bedroom."
The Tall House is no longer standing.
On the 1860 map "Jn H Hopkins" house is at upper left. Below, running along the south side of the road, is the commercial district of Owensville, developed by Hopkins and leased to various tradesmen. A small lane ran between the two rows of bldgs, parallel to the main road, forming a sort of boulevard. The Tall House stood between the road and the lane.
Thank you for the above information. Was Kate Chew's memoir published? How did you find the information so quickly?
DeleteKate's memoir is not published. Sorry, "John H Hopkins" hse is at upper RIGHT on map.
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