Who Lived in Chester Town?

The Hynson-Ringgold House - build in 1735 by Nathaniel Hynson. In 1767, Thomas Ringgold, a wealthy merchant purchased the property for his son and his son's wife.
The Customs House - near this site on May 23, 1774, the men of the town boarded Port Collector William Geddes' ship and threw the detested tea into the Chester River.
WideHall - built in 1770 by Thomas Smythe who was the wealthiest merchant of Kent County. He was a member of the local Committee of Correspondence of 1774, and head of Maryland's revolutionary provisional government from 1774 until the state's first constitution was framed in 1776.
103 Water Street - 18th century house which was originally two stories high.
River House - built between 1784 and 1787 by William Smythe (son of Thomas Smythe). This three-story house has no windows on the sides. This was characteristic of Philadelphia townhouses as well as other houses built on the Eastern Shore.
109 Water Street - two-and-a-half story merchant's house built in the 18th century.
Frisby House - built in 1770 as a townhouse. This was the only 18th century house on this side of Water Street, indicating that most property owners on the opposite side of the street owned the land across from then and used it for barns and storage.
111-113 Water Street - built in 1880-83.
Perkins House - built in the early 18th century.
201 North Water Street - two-and-a-half-story brick home built in 1780.
Historical Society House - three-and-a-half-story home was owned by several Chestertown merchants, one of whom was the port's custom collector, William Geddes.
Nicholson House - built in 1788 by Captain John Nicholson of the Continental Navy.
105 Queen Street - one of the oldest brick homes built in the second quarter of the 18th century.
102 Queen Street - 18th century frame structure.
Buck-Bacchus Store - it is doubtful that John Buck ever lived here, but the building was probably a store for the merchandise he shipped from various parts of the western hemisphere. It was built in 1735.
William Barroll House - this two-and-a-half-story brick house was built in 1735.
Wickes House - a massive brick mansion built in the mid-18th century which once served as a tavern owned by Samuel Beck.
Molloy House - an example of an artisan's or tradesman's house.
Masonic Building - built in 1827.
Emmanuel Protestant Episcopal Church - erected in 1768 as a chapel. On November 9, 1790, the rector, William Smith, presided over a convention that adopted the name, Protestant Episcopal Church in the U.S.
White Swan Tavern - built in 1733 by Joseph Nicholson. He purchased the lot from John Lovegrove, a tanner, whose house still exists at the rear of the building. In the 1790s the structure was enlarged into a tavern.
The Methodist Meeting House - built between 1801-1803 as the first permanent Methodist church in Kent County.
101-103 South Mill Street - built as a small 18th century tavern.
Sterling Castle - tradesman's house in the 18th century. Deeded to Robert Sterling in 1756 for five shillings. Sterling was forced to sell it in 1759 to satisfy a debt to an English shipping firm in Bristol. The house became known as the Sterling Castle to mock the plight of its former debtor-owner. In 1771, Ralph Story, a shipwright, bought the house.
411 West High Street - a two-and-a-half-story brick house built in the 18th century.
414 West High Street - large two-and-a-half-story brick townhouse.
Palmer or Rock of Ages House - unusual 18th century house which was built entirely of massive angular stones.
Washington College - built between 1783-1788 and named for one of its first visitors, George Washington.

Return to The Chester Town Tea Party Lesson.

Last updated on March 12, 1997
Maintained by John L. Day

<jday@umd5.umd.edu>