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The Moorings
The Moorings, today known as the Jesup Blair House, is a two-story frame dwelling built for U.S. Naval Officer James Blair by his father and his wife Mary in 1850, had thirteen rooms and a bathroom. Due to James’ untimely demise in 1853, he never was able to occupy the house. Mary and her children Violet, Jesup, and Lucy James (Jimmy) Blair, found comfort living there close to relatives.
Although Violet Blair Janin inherited the property form her mother, she resided in Washington where participation in club activities kept her in the elite social and diplomatic circles. Janin eventually renamed the house in honor of her younger brother, Jesup, who died in 1902. Violet and her husband Judge Albert Janin, also owned and operated Mammoth Cave, now a National Park.
When Violet Blair Janin bequeathed the house and surrounding land as a public park in perpetuity to the state of Maryland in 1933, the Moorings was no longer a residence, but had been converted into the Silver Spring library. When this park opened on September 23, 1934, it included 15 acres of fine oak trees, and the Colonial Revival mansion designed by Howard W. Cutler and built by laborer from the Civil Works Administration. Such was a fitting legacy for a town named in honor of a mica-flecked spring. |