BGuthrie Photos: MD -- Hampton NHS

MD -- Hampton NHS:

Bruce Guthrie Photos Home Page: [Click here] to go to Bruce Guthrie Photos home page.

Description of Pictures: My first visit this year was a flop. There was a little tiny sign, too small to be read while driving in, announcing they were closed no Tuesdays and Wednesdays. It happened to be Tuesday. There was no sign on the building itself or on the entrance door. The groundskeeper had to tell me about it. He said the information was prominent on the web site. I told him I wasn't touring the web site. So I only got to see the outside of the building.
The second visit was much more successful!

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Copyrights: All pictures were taken by amateur photographer Bruce Guthrie (me!) who retains copyright on them. Free for non-commercial use with attribution. See the [Creative Commons] definition of what this means. "Photos (c) Bruce Guthrie" is fine for attribution. (Commercial use folks including AI scrapers can of course contact me.) Feel free to use in publications and pages with attribution but you don't have permission to sell the photos themselves. A free copy of any printed publication using any photographs is requested. Descriptive text, if any, is from a mixture of sources, quite frequently from signs at the location or from official web sites; copyrights, if any, are retained by their original owners.

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Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. HAMP_100309_033.JPG: There was a fair amount of tree damage from the snow storms
2. HAMP_100309_037.JPG: When I came back a month later, the tree on the far left had fallen over
3. HAMP_100404_0051.JPG: The tree fell after the snow storm
4. HAMP_100404_0115.JPG: Margaretta Sirina Ridgely 1869-1949 Daughter of Charles & Margaretta Sophia Howard Ridgely Founded the House of Bethany a school for girls in Liberia, West Africa, where she lived and taught for twenty eight years and was affectionately called "Meissie" "Our Mother"
5. HAMP_100404_0216.JPG: Greenhouse #1, circa 1850. This greenhouse served as a propagating house, to grow vegetables and flowers for the mansion, gardens and grounds. Only one section of the original "L" shaped structure remains. One greenhouse portion and the room users for heating apparatus were demolished.
6. HAMP_100404_0355.JPG: Some work is needed here
7. HAMP_100404_1038.JPG: The family kids had written into the glass. The ranger said that there had been other etched panes of glass but neighborhood kids had broken them.
8. HAMP_100404_1208.JPG: Ice house
9. HAMP_100404_1240.JPG: Mules at Hampton: In the South, eighteenth and nineteenth century farmers regarded mules as superior draft animals. They possessed great strength, were hardier, required less feed, lived longer, were more disease resistant than horses and oxen, and better withstood rough treatment from their human handlers. At Hampton, mules pulled plows through fields, ice rakes over ponds, and wagons on roads. There's a Ridgely family story that concerns the replacement of mules with tractors around 1920. The story goes that "Captain Jack" Ridgely, reluctantly consented to purchase tractors after many pleadings by his sons. The new tractors were taken into the field and promptly got stuck in the mud. A short time later, mules were brought out. They moved the plows through the fields with ease. It seems that Captain Jack, who never drove an automobile, was vindicated in his belief that modern technology is not always best! Mule Barn: circa 1850 This masonry barn housed the working animals and stored their feed and harnesses. Mules were used to haul wagons, pull farm equipment, and support the plantation's manual labor.
10. HAMP_100404_1270.JPG: Welcome to the Dairy: The building you are in was used to process milk. Cream was skimmed from milk as it cooled in pans placed on shelves located about three feet back from the brick work around the water trough. Look for a shadow along the walls for their location. The cream was stored in containers in the deep trough. The water in the trough flows from an underground spring captured in the basin outside the building. It is conducted through an iron pipe located in the basin. Cream was churned into butter, and the butter was marketed to customers in the area for over one hundred years. Dairy maids, some enslaved, performed their duties practically every day of the year. This building dates to at least the 1790s and is about three times the size of the typical dairy building for that time.
11. HAMP_100404_1313.JPG: Quarters #2 and 3: circa 1850 These two stone buildings, which replaced earlier log structures, housed slaves before the Civil War. After the abolition of slavery, they provided quarters for plantation and farm workers.
12. HAMP_100404_1326.JPG: Market Farm: The tenant farms at Hampton played an important role in feeding the growing population of Baltimore City and surrounding towns such as Towson. Chief products included butter, milk, wheat and grains. Customers included commercial buyers, other dairies, hospitals, religious institutions and even Ridgely employees. Hay and corn are among the most commonly sold crops. Pigs, chickens, and pullets (hens that are less than a year old) were also frequently sold. Tenant farming yielded few profits during the 1870s. Hiring a farm manage, costs of seed and replacing tools took their toll from profits. JM Anderson, farm manager to the Ridgelys reported that hte net profit for the first few months of 1871 was $7.00. Farming at Hampton continued into the Twentieth Century. A recession after World War I drove prices for wheat and corn to new lows, forcing many Marylanders to diversify. Between 1900 and 1940, the amount of land farmed to Maryland decreased from 82% to 66%. Rising farm costs, decreasing crop prices and demand for land by development companies signaled the end of farming at Hampton in the 1940s. Sometimes, the Ridgelys expressed exasperation with their workers. "Prince has lost his foreman, Sam Bayne," Helen Ridgely wrote on Saturday, June 16th, 1906. Bayne left without warning, "after living on the place for fifteen or twenty years." Tenant farmers often complained about high rent rates. One tenant named Todd, stated: "no man could make an honest living on them." ...
13. HAMP_100404_1330.JPG: Changing Landscapes and Lifestyles: "I think we agreed that the time for a gentleman to farm in Maryland has gone by and that the only thing to be done was to sell or be at the merce of Pennsylvania or Maryland Yankees who are worse than the New England tribe." -- Charles Ridgely to Thomas Buckler, 1866 The post Civil War years brought profound changes to the Hampton. Some changers were economical and technological. The abolition of slavery in Maryland necessitated a transition to paid labor or sharecropping. Innovations in agricultural technology such as horse-drawn mowers, reapers and steam-powered equipment meant that fewer people were needed to farm a given area. Other changes were social. While slavery was abolished, racial attitudes lingered, resulting in tension between whites and blacks. Poor working-class whites saw newly-freed African-Americans as competitors for jobs. Many former slave owners resented blacks' newly-freed status. For African-Americans, the initial euphoria of emancipation was tempered by limited opportunities and occasional violence. For African-Americans, opportunities for a better life came slowly. Even twenty years after the Civil War, many remained as tenants or labored on their former owner's farms. In 1880, only one-third of black children age 6-15 years old attended school in Maryland. Low wages made it difficult to purchase one's own farm. Wages averaged 50 cents a day for farm laborers from the 1860s into the Twentieth Century. During the early 1900s, a number of large landowners sold portions of their estates to newly-arrived immigrants who came with cash to buy land. A Report on the Select Committee in Maryland in 1888 stated: "The tendency, therefore, is to break up large tracts and to dispose of these.. to thrifty immigrants, who will be enabled to work them properly." While African-Americans could vote and own land, the threat of violence was always present. One example, in 1885, involved Howard Cooper. Cooper was a resident of East Towson, a local community believed to be settled by former slaves from Hampton. Allegedly accused of raping a white woman, he was lynched by a mob on the jailhouse lawn days before his trial.
14. HAMP_100404_1337.JPG: A Building's Evolution: Slave Quarter to Tenant House: John and Eliza Ridgely, the third owners of the estate, decided to update the design of the home farm in the years just before the Civil War. They tore down several older slave quarters and replaced them with the two stone slave quarters standing today. Rather than a simple, utilitarian design, the new Ferme Ornee (French for "ornamental farm") was marked by decoration and artful layout, designed to show the Ridgely family taste. As part of the same modernization, they added the bell and the kitchen wing to the overseer's house, and built a new mule barn. Both of these slave quarters remained in use into the middle of the twentieth century as tenant farmers' quarters. Through the 1800s, the Ridgelys made several changes to this structure. They added interior doors to convert it from a duplex to a single, larger house. They added a new window to the south wall. Stoves made the house warmer, and a porch (no longer standing) provided a pleasant place to sit on a summer evening. In 1948, when they sold their mansion, the Ridgelys updated the farm once again. They put an addition on the overseer's house and modernized this building so that it could serve as a residence for their servants. The kitchen sink in this room was added then. So was electricity and a water closet on the second floor. An enduring mystery: The windows on the north end of the quarters were fitted with iron bars. Some are still in place. A close look at the window frames will reveal where the others once were. We do not know the purpose of these bars. Some speculate that the two rooms may have served as a jail. Given the location, smack in the middle of the home farm, this seems unlikely to other pundits. Some speculate that the space may have been used to store valuable seeds or tools, items carefully guarded by the farm manager. Sadly, no written record remains to tell us definitely when or why they were installed.
15. HAMP_100404_1350.JPG: Slavery at Hampton: Slavery at Hampton was unique and changed over time. The Ridgely family derived its wealth primarily from extensive ironworks and agriculture. During the Colonial Era, work on the Hampton estate was mainly performed by indentured servants, wage mainly performed by indentured servants, wage laborers, and for a time, British prisoners. Following the Revolution, slaveholding at the Hampton estate grew and by 1800 became the primary workforce. Slavery at Hampton was unique in a number of ways. It was not solely agricultural in nature. Many slaves performed industrial job in the Northhampton iron works. The close proximity of the large free black population in Baltimore and free state of Pennsylvania meant that refuges for runaways were close by. Hampton was one of the largest slave-owning estates in Maryland. Tax records show 130 slaves in 1783, over 339 in 1829 and 61 in 1860 in a time when 77% of all masters in the county owned fewer than five slaves. The mansion and lifestyle it represented were enjoyed by few Americans. Such a large building required a substantial domestic workforce for daily operations. Charles Carnan Ridgely, second master of Hampton, owned approximately 350 slaves at his death and manumitted (freed) all that he legally could. This is one of the largest manumissions in the history of Maryland, but it did end slavery at Hampton. His son, John Carnan Ridgely, purchased some sixty or so more slaves and manumitted only one. Following the abolition of slavery in Maryland in 1864, some African-American remained on the estate as tenant farmers while others chose to leave.
16. HAMP_100404_1352.JPG: Slave Life at Hampton: What was it like to be a slave on the Ridgely estate? Although there are no known diaries from the enslaved people of Hampton, research from account books, archeology, diaries from the Ridgely family, and archived letters provide fragmentary glimpses into the daily life of African-Americans at Hampton. Like a novel with pages missing, these details provide a touchstone to the past and prompt us to ask more questions. Who Lived Where? This building and the adjacent slave quarters were built at the same time (1850s) and of the same stone masonry as the nearby mule barn. The close proximity to both the mansion and overseer's house placed them under constant supervision, leaving them almost no privacy. Earlier records from 1798 list "negro" houses of log construction in various sizes from 10x12 to 22x32 feet. Other slave cabins were likely spread out across the larger farm landscape. A large, wooden octagon-shaped building located just outside the mansion, likely housed domestic servants. It burned in the 20th century. What did they eat? Account records from 1829 indicate provisions "in support of Negroes" show corn, herring, and bacon. Cornmeal and salted pork were common foodstuffs in the mid-Atlantic region. Frequently, saves kept their own gardens, often located near their cabins, to supplement the plantation diet. What is in a name? Names of Ridgely slaves can tella story. Although there is no evidence that Ridgely slaves were first generation African-American, named such as Gamboe, Mingo, and Juba do appear. Was this an attempt to hold onto their African culture? Other names such as Caesar, Vulcan and Hercules reflect the Greco-Roman reading tastes of the master. Biblical names such as Moses, Abraham and John show the influence of religion. Some names in the Ridgely slave records are descriptive such as "Yellow Harry," "Big Charlotte" and "Old Dan." Did such surnames show affection or emphasize a servile status?
17. HAMP_100404_1356.JPG: They did Everything, Everywhere, Anytime: Hampton used slave labor for almost 100 years. Tasks ranged from highly skilled to menial labor. While documents such as log books, journals, bills, and letters from the Ridgely family give a glimpse into the type of work slaves performed, some questions still remain unanswered. Did those who worked in the mansion have a higher status than those who labored on the farm. What was it like to be a slave working at the Northhampton Iron Furnace alongside paid laborers. How much work were children expected to perform? Jobs performed by enslaved people varied but can be grouped into three main categories: Industrial, Agricultural, and Domestic. Industrial: Northhampton Iron Furnace records indicate that slaves were used for primarily unskilled labor such as cutting and hauling trees, making charcoal, breaking up limestone and slag, working the rolling mill, and as teamsters. However, a will from 1772 shows two slaves, Toby and Daniel, as holding the privileges position of "founder." The founder determined the amounts of ore and limestone put into the furnace -- a position requiring skill and experience. The will stated that "they are to be kept as founders at the said works for their natural lives." A tax list from 1798 shows that 26 slaves worked to keep the Northhampton furnaces in blast. The furnace closed sometime around 1829. Agricultural: Crops grown on the Ridgely estate were grown for profit and to feed the workforce. Notes in journals and log books indicate the types of crops grown and work performed. References to cradling, raking, binding, mowing, and threshing snow that slaves harvested wheat and grains. The remains of a nearby corn crib indicate corn was also a significant crop on the estate. Slaves also took care of the mules, horses, hogs, cows, and poultry on the farm. During some years, the Ridgely rented slaves from other estates in the area to take in the harvest. Domestic: The size of the mansion and lifestyle of the Ridgely family required a large and specialized workforce. Slaves, referred to frequently as "servants," worked as cooks, waiters, laundresses, housemaids, nannies, and housekeepers. Their days were spent dusting furniture, polishing silverware, preparing meals, ironing,and doing other chores. Outside of the mansion, slaves maintained the ornate gardens, took care of the thoroughbred racehorses, drove the coaches, and performed routine maintenance on the mansion and outbuildings.
18. HAMP_100404_1364.JPG: Escape! Hampton and the Underground Railroad: From 1765 until 1863, at least 96 enslaved people sought freedom by running away from Hampton. Runaway slave advertisements give researchers an idea on how enslaved people were dressed, what they looked like, attitudes of their owners, and the type of work they performed. For example, one early runaway slave notice from 1765 for a "Negro Man named Dick" describes him as "having a full bear, wearing a felt hat, ornaburg shirt, crocus trousers... It is supposed he may have a gun with him... a small Cocking piece... having been taken out of an Out-House at the Furnace since he ran away." Another ad from 1788 describes a "Negro Wench, named Pugg... about 5 feet 6 inches high, full eyes and face, high forehead, very black... she took with her a mulatto child about four years old, ... at the time she absconded from the Northhampton Furnace." The Underground Railroad: Beginning in the early 19th century, a movement called the Underground Railroad helped enslaved people flee the South. Operating without formal organization, participants in the Underground Railroad included whites and blacks, enslaved African-Americans, American Indians and member sof such religious groups as Quakers, Methodists and Baptists. No actual trains existed on the Underground Railroad. Guides were called "conductors," and hiding places were known as "depots" and "stations." Most runaways traveled at night on foot and took advantage of the natural protections offered by swamps, forests, and waterways. Some runaways took refuge in cities such as Baltimore and New Orleans and blended into the free black population. It is not known if enslaved people from Hampton used the Underground Railroad to escape. However, a runaway slave notice from October, 1814 for a "negro girl named Betty, 16 ot 17 years of age" states "All persons are forewarned from harboring or carrying off the said Betty at their peril." Recapture: Notations in Ridgely account books for jail fees indicate that not all escape attempts were successful. For example, an account on the executor of Governor Charles Carnan Ridgely's will mentions, "Paid Thomas Ross for apprehending and lodging in Jail 12 negro men who ran away from the forges..." Other records on this account mention, "Paid Victor Holmes for apprehending negro Sam Howard who absconded" and "cash paid David Hidgerd reward for apprehending negro Godfrey Ashburn who ran away." Runaway slaves risked harsh treatment upon recapture. A letter from Walter Bowie to General Ridgely dated Feb. 20, 1796 states: "Mr Barton has been so fortunate as to get your man and I have no doubt will get him safe home. I could wish if it is possible... that you have instructions not to whip him, as he appears to be truly penitent for transgression. He very much laments the parting from his wife and says he will stay with you if you purchase his wife..."
19. HAMP_100404_1408.JPG: Charles Bud Lived Here: Helen Ridgely, fifth mistress of Hampton, mentioned this building in her diary in 1909. She described it as the "log cabin back of the Lower House -- now quite a comfortable weather-boarded house of four rooms." At that time, Charles Bud, a blacksmith and his wife lived in the building. Reuse and change. This building served different purposes through its history. For many years, Hampton National Historic Site has relied on oral tradition and outward appearances to identify this building as a slave quarter. New evidence suggests that the building was erected shortly before the Civil War, but not as a residence. The building is non-symmetrical and has small fireplaces that are not equipped with cooking cranes. These conditions are uncommon for slave quarters. Recent archeological evidence who indicates that the building was not a residence when it was first built. Archeologists excavated very little domestic trash from before the 1870s. However, there is a great deal of such trash from the 1870s and onward. Two buildings joined into one. The wood used in the current building shows evidence of having been used in other buildings before. Furthermore, the way the logs are joined strongly suggests that the building was constructed by moving two log cabins together and connecting them into one. Those log cabins may have been slave quarters before their reuse. So, if it wasn't a slave quarter, what was it? It is possible that the building first served as a plantation office, storehouse, or workshop of some sort.
Wikipedia Description: Hampton National Historic Site
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hampton National Historic Site, in the Hampton area north of Towson, Maryland, United States, preserves a remnant of a vast 18th century estate including a Georgian manor house, gardens and grounds, and original stone slave quarters. The estate was owned by the Ridgely family for seven generations, from 1745 to 1948. The Hampton Mansion or manor house, once known locally as the "Hampton House", was the largest private home in America when it was completed in 1790 and is considered today to be one of the finest examples of Georgian architecture in the U.S. Its furnishings, together with the estate's slave quarters and other preserved structures, provide a comprehensive insight into late 18th century and early 19th century life of the landowning aristocracy. Hampton is the first site selected as a National Historical Site by the U.S. National Park Service for its architectural significance.

In addition to the mansion and slave quarters, visitors today may tour the overseer's house and grounds. Hampton National Historic Site is 4 miles (6.4 km) north of Baltimore at 535 Hampton Lane, near interchange #27B of the Baltimore Beltway (I-695) and Dulaney Valley Road (Maryland Route 146).

History:

1700s:

The property now known as the Hampton estate was originally part of a land grant called Northampton given to Col. Henry Darnall (c. 1645–1711), a relative of Lord Baltimore. His heirs sold the land on April 2, 1745, to Col. Charles Ridgely (1702–1772), a tobacco farmer and trader. The bill of sale records that the property included "...houses, tobacco houses (tobacco barns), stables, gardens, and orchards". By the late 1750s, Hampton extended to more than 10,000 acres (4,047 ha) and included an ironworks. His son, Captain Charles Ridgely (1733–1790), expanded the family business considerably, including gristmills, apple orchards, and stone quarries. During the American Revolutionary War, the ironworks was a significant source of income for the Ridgelys. In 1783, Capt. Ridgely began construction of the main house, or Hampton Mansion. When it was completed in 1790, the Hampton Mansion was the largest private home in the United States. When Capt. Ridgely died that same year, his nephew Charles Carnan Ridgely (1760–1829) became the second master of Hampton. An avid horseman, Charles Carnan began raising Thoroughbred horses at Hampton, where he had a racetrack installed. A 1799 advertisement promotes the stud services of his racehorse "Grey Medley". Another of Ridgely's Hampton-raised racehorses at the time, "Post Boy", won the Washington City Jockey Club cup.

1800s:

Under Charles Carnan Ridgely, Hampton reached its peak of 25,000 acres (39 sq mi/101 km�) in the 1820s. The mansion overlooked a grand estate of orchards, ironworks, coal mining, marble quarries, mills, and mercantile interests. The vast farm produced corn, beef cattle, dairy products, hogs, and horses. In 1820, an orangery was built on the grounds. Charles Carnan Ridgely served as the governor of the state of Maryland (1816–1819).

When Governor Ridgely died in 1829, he freed Hampton's more than 300 slaves in his will. The Hampton estate was split among various heirs, with his son, John Carnan Ridgely (1790–1867), inheriting the mansion and 4,500 acres (18 km�). The ironworks closed and thereafter the Ridgelys' income was primarily derived from farming, investments, and their stone quarries. Eliza Ridgely (1803–1867), his wife and the subject of Thomas Sully's famous portrait painting, Lady with a Harp, purchased many artworks and furnishings for the mansion. She was noted as a horticulturist, and had successively larger and more elaborate terraced gardens cultivated on the grounds, with a large variety of flowers and shrubs grown in the estate's greenhouses and tended by some of the 60 slaves purchased by John Carnan Ridgely. By the mid-19th century, the Hampton estate had one of the most extensive collections of citrus trees in the U.S.

As the Civil War raged across the farmlands of Maryland and Pennsylvania at the Battle of Antietam (1862) and the Battle of Gettysburg (1863), the Ridgelys' Hampton estate remained untouched. Although Maryland, as a border state, was exempted from U.S. President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, the state legislature eliminated slavery in 1864. With the end of slavery, Hampton began to decline. A number of the former slaves continued to work at Hampton as paid household servants and other hired hands worked the farm. With the deaths of John and Eliza in 1867, their son Charles became the next master of Hampton. The mansion and the remaining 1,000 acres (4.0 km�) were subsequently inherited upon Charles' death in 1872 by Captain John Ridgely (1851–1938).

1900s:

As nearby Baltimore grew and local agriculture declined, the Ridgelys found it increasingly difficult to maintain the property. Beginning in the 1920s and accelerating in the 1930s, Captain John Ridgely sold off large portions of the estate for suburban housing development, now known as the Hampton community. The Hampton Mansion remained in the Ridgely family until 1948, when John Ridgely, Jr. (1882–1959), moved to the smaller Farm House on the property and the Mansion was acquired by the Avalon Foundation (now part of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation). The last generation of Ridgelys to live at the mansion was John Ridgely III (1911–1990) and his wife Lillian (1908-1996).

It was designated a National Historic Site by the Secretary of the Interior on June 22, 1948, the first site to be so selected on the basis of its architectural significance. Beginning in May, 1949, Hampton Mansion was opened to the public in the care of Preservation Maryland for the next thirty years (1949-1979). On October 15, 1966, Hampton was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Since October, 1979, it has been operated and managed by the National Park Service.

2000–present:

Starting in January 2005, the mansion closed for almost three years as it underwent a major restoration project. It re-opened to the public on November 30, 2007. As part of the 2005-2007 renovations, the drawing room and two bedchambers were completely refurbished. The drawing room's furnishings were extensively researched to reflect accurately the Mansion in the 1830-1860 period. The ornate cupola atop the mansion was restored, including the spherical ornament above the cupola, which was refinished in gold leaf. The Park Service's chief ranger for the Hampton National Historic Site said afterwards of the $3 million in renovations, "I don't think the mansion has ever looked better".

"Preservation Maryland", a statewide preservation advocacy organization, conferred its Stewardship Award in 2007 on the Hampton National Historic Site for refurnishing the mansion's rooms with historical accuracy while unobtrusively installing modern fire suppression and climate control systems.

Currently:

The remaining 63-acre (25 ha) estate, straddling Hampton Lane, is managed by the National Park Service. In addition to the mansion itself, visitors may view nine surviving original structures built during the 1790s to mid-19th century period:

* Farm House - the residence of the farm manager or overseer, a portion is believed to predate the Ridgelys' purchase of the property in 1745. After the last Ridgely family member (John Ridgely Jr.) vacated the mansion in 1948, he and his wife Jane lived here.
* Two slave quarters built of stone, now provided with interpretive exhibits on slave life.
* Dairy, built of stone before 1800.
* Mule barn, built of stone c. 1845.
* Long house/granary.
* Ash house, wooden log building, and dovecote.

Self-guided tours may be made of the grounds during hours when the park is open to the public, including the farm, formal garden, family cemetery, and two stables built of stone for Thoroughbred horses. A replica of the original orangery (built in 1824) may also be toured. One surviving 34 ft (10.4m)–deep underground icehouse is visible near the mansion, but not open to visitors. The Park Service provides ample free parking, a gift shop, and wheelchair accessibility at the mansion. Chamber music and harpsichord performances are occasionally presented in the mansion's ornate "great hall".

The local community actively supports the site's preservation through a friends' group, "Historic Hampton Incorporated", which has assisted the National Park Service in achieving historical accuracy and interpretive potential of the interiors.

The Tea Room controversy:

When the Hampton estate first opened to the public in 1949, the mansion's kitchen was converted into a small restaurant. Known as the Tea Room, it was operated by a concessionaire for the next 50 years, serving lunches featuring Hampton Imperial Crab (backfin lump meat from the blue crab, baked and seasoned with spices) and other Chesapeake Bay seafood delicacies, served with a glass of sherry. A local newspaper columnist described the Tea Room as "offering gentility...a fireplace nearly as big as a wall and mullioned windows with sills that are nearly 2 feet thick. The view is rolling lawns...".

When the Tea Room was closed by the National Park Service on January 1, 1999, officials said they did so because of the potential fire hazard posed by operating a kitchen in the main park building and the possibility of insect or rodent damage to historic items in the mansion. While it "may be a pleasant place to enjoy a meal...that is clearly less important than the need to preserve Hampton's buildings, objects and landscapes for future generations", the Park Service stated. Officials of Preservation Maryland said they were "disappointed" by the restaurant's closure, saying it helped attract visitors to the historic site. The former chairwoman of the Hampton women's committee—which raises money for various projects at Hampton—also criticized the decision. Since 2006, the women's group has renewed efforts to have the Tea Room re-opened, saying it would draw more visitors and repeat business from locals to the park. A Park Service spokesman was quoted as saying in October, 2006, that "The mansion is not going to be the site of any food operation", but has made no further comment since then.
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