Charlotte Hall Academy (18ST400)

The Charlotte Hall Academy site (18ST400) is a 5-acre area that encompasses the two earliest (18th and 19th century) buildings of the Charlotte Hall Academy, located in Charlotte Hall, St. Mary’s County.

An act creating a free school in Charlotte Hall was passed by the Maryland legislature in 1774, but the first building was not completed until 1796. This School Hall was constructed from brick likely made on the site. In 1803, the still-extant brick "White House" was built to serve as a classroom and the residence of the school’s principal. By 1837, it was converted to a student dormitory and classroom. The School Hall burned down in 1843 and was not replaced until 1857, using bricks made on site. It in turn burned down in 1896. In 1852, the school began developing its military program, requiring more space for athletic fields and parade grounds. Two major buildings, the Dent Memorial Chapel and the Classroom Building (demolished 1986) were added in the late 19th century. Other buildings were constructed in the early and mid-20th centuries. The Academy closed in 1976, and The Maryland Veterans Home Commission acquired the site in 1978, operating it as a nursing home.

A Phase I archaeological investigation of the site was conducted in 1981 ahead of proposed construction at the Veterans Home. A total of 87 shovel test pits and one test trench were excavated, while field walking took place in areas where surface visibility was good. Traces of several buildings, including a possible tobacco barn, and a former fire hydrant location were uncovered. In addition, a concentration of wasters likely from one of the late 18th- or early 19th-century brick clamps was discovered.

In 1984, an archaeological investigation of the area surrounding the Classroom Building was undertaken ahead of its demolition. A total of 75 shovel test pits were excavated. The only cultural feature encountered was comprised of brick rubble possibly from the 1796 School Hall.

Phase I/II testing was undertaken in 1989 ahead of the demolition of the 1960 Dormitory Building. A total of 85 shovel test pits were excavated around the building during the Phase I survey. Included in the survey area were the brick features discovered in 1981 and 1984. The work revealed a wide, compact layer of gravel and construction/destruction debris around the Dormitory. A small test unit was excavated to explore the stratigraphy through this layer. During Phase II work, 8 test units were excavated in and around the demolished ruins of the 1897 Classroom Building. They revealed a large pit feature of late 19th/early 20th-century date, destruction rubble from the 1857 School Hall, and a mid-to-late 19th-century building foundation with associated robbers’ trenches.

(Edited from the Maryland Historical Trust Synthesis Project)