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» The Early Years
» Patriot And Leader In The Cause Of American Independence
» Mount Clare
» Later Years |
| LATER YEARS |
After her husband's death Mrs. Carroll moved to Mount Clare from Annapolis, making Mount Clare her permanent home. She survived her husband by 34 years, dying at Mount Clare March 14, 1817. She was buried at St. Anne's Church, Annapolis.
Because the Carrolls had no surviving children, the Barrister's will provided that James Maccubbin, one of the Barrister's sister's five sons, become his heir by assuming the Carroll name. It was during James's ownership that the cornerstone of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was laid on land donated by him in 1829 for a right-of-way and depot, the Mount Clare Station - the first railroad station in the country. A stone viaduct over Gwynns Falls, the oldest railroad bridge in the country, was named the Carrollton Viaduct in honor of James Carroll. In 1848, the Carrolls sold land for the right-of-way for the Locust Point Branch of the B&O railroad, a spur leading from the main line southward to the shipyards.
James Mccubbin Carroll, Jr. and his family, the third generation and last of the Carroll family to live at Mount Clare, departed from Mount Clare in 1851. By that time the city and industrialization was encroaching on the boundaries of the property. By 1861 the Civil War effort was gaining energy. Federal troops camped on the property which was called Camp Carroll and later renamed Camp Chesebrough. Prior to and during the Civil War, the dependencies were falling into disrepair. In 1870 the Carroll heirs leased the house and 15 acres to the West Baltimore Scheutzen Association as a clubhouse and recreational park equipped with a shooting range, ten-pin alley, drinking hall and bandstand. The dependencies were dilapidated and in 1873 the Scheutzens requested to demolish them. A two story kitchen wing on the west side of the house was built.
In 1890 the Carroll heirs sold the house and 20 acres to the City of Baltimore Park Commission for use as a public park. The Park Commission pursued more acreage expanding the park to 36 acres. In 1903, the firm of Olmsted Brothers Landscape Architects was hired to make improvements to Baltimore's park lands. Work began in Carroll Park in 1904 and today many of the Olmsted features are still in existence.
In order to obtain the original Georgian architecture of the house the Scheutzen-built wing was torn down by the City and in 1908 the present wings were built as bath houses and locker rooms for the park. In 1917, The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in the State of Maryland assumed custodianship of the house, to manage and be operated as a Museum House. Carroll Park is maintained by the Department of Recreation and Parks.
In 1970, Mount Clare was designated by the U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, as a Registered National Historic Landmark. Archaeological research conducted on the property has provided invaluable information assisting in the interpretation of the history, house and grounds as well as the restoration of the house and grounds including identifying architectural features of the original wings and forecourt footprint.
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