Existing comment:
Lafayette
The friend of our fathers will always be welcome to the hearts of their children.
Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834), the French nobleman who came and served in the Continental Army during the American Revolution, visited Annapolis on five occasions. His last visit was part of his one-year tour of the United States, August 24, 1824 to September 7, 1825, during which he visited all 24 states and the principal cities.
On Friday, December 17, 1824, he was met at Governor's Bridge over the Patuxent River and escorted into Annapolis by Captain Sellman's troop of horse. He was greeted at the Maryland State House at 3:00pm by the Governor, other dignitaries, and a group of young women, all dressed in white, evergreen wreaths on their heads, and holding banners emblazoned with: "Lafayette, the friend of our fathers will always be welcome to the hearts of their children."
He was given military honors at Fort Severn and was a guest for four nights in the Governor's house which was located where Dahlgren Hall is today. There were dinners and balls in the State House and in the Great Hall at St. John's College. He reviewed the Maryland militia on the college green. He dined with Charles Carroll of Carrollton, the surviving Maryland signer of the Declaration of Independence. The menu included diamondback terrapin, then a Maryland specialty. Lafayette departed Annapolis on Tuesday, December 31. |