The Old Stone House
In the midst of Washington, D.C., a city of grand memorials to national
leaders and significant events, stands an unassuming building commemorating
the daily lives of ordinary Americans who made this city, and this nation,
unique. The Old Stone House, one of the oldest known structures remaining
in the nation's capital, is a simple 18th century dwelling built and inhabited
by common people.
Since 1765, the Old Stone House has withstood the forces of development
and commercial growth that made Georgetown one of the nation's busiest
ports by the mid- nineteenth
century. Ironically, local folklore is responsible for saving this architectural
landmark from destruction. In 1790, when President George Washington and
Pierre L'Enfant arrived to carve out a federal district from the surrounding
wilderness, a merchant by the name of John Suter, Jr. was renting the
front room of the Old Stone House. His father ran Suter's Tavern two blocks
southwest on Fishing Lane (now 31st Street, NW), where President Washington
held negotiations with local landowners. The connection with the Suter
family became intertwined with the history of the Old Stone House, and
the legend was born that the house served as headquarters for both Washington
and L'Enfant. In later years, this mythical association with America's
first president and the man who helped design Washington, D.C. saved the
house from the fate of other structures of its era.
Although few detailed records survive from the families who owned the
Old Stone House, we can learn much about their lives from the architecture
of the house and the personal possessions listed in wills and bills of
sale.
In 1764, Christopher and Rachel Layman traveled from Pennsylvania with
their two sons to begin a new life in the growing port town of Georgetown
along the Potomac River. For one pound, ten shillings, they bought Lot
Three, a property facing Bridge Street (now M Street, NW), and financed
the construction of this one-room house of blue fieldstone, quarried about
two miles up river, and solid oak boards, hewn with a pit saw. Suter family
became intertwined with the history of the Old Stone House, and the legend
was born that the house served as headquarters for both Washington and
L'Enfant. In later years, this mythical association with America's first
president and the man who helped design Washington, D.C.
The backbreaking labor and skill of the builders is evident in the well-placed
stones and evenly laid ceiling beams. The marks left by the massive saw,
used to cut the ceiling beams can be seen in the room that housed the
Layman family.
The Layman's lower-middle class house was simple and functional: stone
walls two to three feet thick and packed dirt floors protected the family
from harsh weather, while low ceilings conserved heat from the hearth
fire.
The Laymans did not own more than the basic essentials, just Christopher's
toots, a stove, Bibles, and some furniture. These items were detailed
in Layman's will when he died unexpectedly in 1765. Two years later, Rachel
Layman remarried and sold the home to another widow, Mrs. Cassandra Chew.
A prominent Georgetown landowner and self-sufficient widow, Mrs. Chew
was a member of the upper-middle class. Her wealth included other property
in and around Georgetown, as well as enslaved Africans; tax records indicate
that Mrs. Chew owned six slaves in 1800. Her wealth enabled her to make
significant additions to the Old Stone House. She financed construction
of the rear kitchen in 1767 and the addition of the second floor between
1767 and 1775. The colonial kitchen is regarded as the "heart" of the
home, with a hearth large enough to provide heat and fond for the household.
As in the front room, skilled masonry work is evident throughout the
kitchen. The irregular stones of the fireplace and the walls were meticulously
stacked and affixed with a crude mortar of sand, lime, ash, and water.
The solid oak mantle speaks of a time when stands of old-growth forests
surrounded Georgetown. It was not uncommon for just one of these gigantic
trees to supply enough lumber to build a home of this size.
 Mrs.
Chew's upper-middle class status is more evident in the public rooms on
the second floor. During the colonial era, the dining room was considered
the traditional place for families and guests to gather. Here visitors
would eat their meals and socialize.
The recessed pine cabinetry once concealed a dumb-waiter that delivered
hot meals from the kitchen below. The large clock by the mantle is the
only original piece of furniture remaining in the Old Stone House. It
is believed to have been built by John Suter, Jr., who at one time rented
the front room on the first floor from Mrs. Chew.
The second floor architecture differs significantly from that of the
original construction, revealing other aspects of the Chew family's lifestyle.
High ceilings ventilated the hallway between the dining room and the two
front rooms, and chair railings prevented unsightly markings and damage
to the plastered and painted walls. The more formal front door provided
access for the family and their guests, while the lower entrance was reserved
for workmen or deliveries.
The two front rooms may have served multiple purposes, as a parlor, sitting
room, or bedrooms, as needed. The smaller room could have been used as
a sitting room for guests. Another clue to the varied uses of the rooms
is the finely carved wooden mantle piece in the Master Bedroom/Parlor.
Believed to be of French origin, the mantle was placed in the room in
the 1790s, just as construction began in the new capital city of Washington,
D.C.
The final form of the Old Stone House is the result of a property dispute
during the 1790s. The original west wall had been constructed several
feet beyond Mrs. Chew's property line and had to be moved. When the wall
was dismantled, Mrs. Chew took the opportunity to add the third floor
to the home. Considered private spaces, these three rooms are much plainer
than those on the second floor. The unfinished paneling and unpainted
walls suggest that only the family used these rooms, most likely as childrens'
bedrooms or for storage.
The third floor bedroom is unique among the rooms in the home: it features
the only closet in the house. Considered rooms and taxed as such by the
British crown, closets were not often built during the colonial era. After
the American Revolution, the "closet tax" was abolished, allowing homeowners
to construct closets without additional taxation. Another significant
difference in the third floor is its construction of brick rather than
stone.
As Georgetown became more commercially successful and as builders moved
to the area to take advantage of the many opportunities in nearby Washington,
D.C., brickyards became more widespread. This revolution in building materials
altered architectural styles and foreshadowed the extinction of homes
like the Old Stone House.
Upon her death in 1807, Cassandra Chew bequeathed the Old Stone House
to one of her daughters, Mary Smith Brumley. It is believed that Mary
lived in the house from 1787, after the death of her first husband, until
around 1802, when she remarried. She was the first in a succession of
proprietors throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries who operated
businesses out of the house or rented the property. Like her mother, Mary
was financially comfortable. An 1826 inventory of her possessions indicates
that she owned fifteen slaves; eventually she sold one slave freedom for
$200 and infant child for $1.
In the late 19th century, Georgetown was home to a large slave and free
black population, perhaps as much as one-third of the city's total. Their
labor before emancipation contributed to the commercial development of
the town.
Throughout its long history, the Old Stone House has been the subject
of much local folklore. In the early 20th century, legend had it that
the house served as "George Washington's Headquarters," and for some time,
a sign confirming the myth hung over the front door. Although later disproved,
the myth preserved the Old Stone House for later generations.
The Old Stone House was privately owned until 1953, when the federal
government purchased the property for $90,000 in response to a petition
from local residents who had come to regard the house as one of historic
significance. At that time, the house accommodated offices, and the Parkway
Motor Company, a used car dealership whose paved lot sat in what is now
the location of the beautiful English style garden.
 The
home and grounds were transferred to the National Park Service and opened
to the public in 1960. Today, Rock Creek Park, a unit of the National
Park Service, administers this historic site. We hope you have enjoyed
your visit to this unique surviving remnant of the early republic.
How to Get There
Old Stone House is located at 3051 M Street, NW, in Georgetown, Washington,
DC. Nearest Metro stop is at Foggy Bottom. Commercial parking is available
next door.
Information
Open Wed.-Sun. 12-5. Closed on New Years Day, July 4th, Thanksgiving Day
& Christmas. Admission is free, but numbers are limited to 25 persons
in the house at one time. Group and school tours by appointment. For further
information call 202-426-6851 V/TDD 426-6835, or write:
The Old Stone House
3051 M Street, NW
Washington, DC 20007
http://www.nps.gov/rocr/olst/home.htm
Last Update: 8/5/01
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