Sunday, January 18, 2009

Centennial Hotel

I was searching the Maryland State Archives online land records this afternoon to fill in some holes in our chains of title. In doing so I found several conveyances that form a solid chain for Lot 4 and the 'Long Tavern' (1809). By the middle of the 19th-century it had been acquired by David Middleton who called his establishment the Union Hotel. In 1876, George J. R. Huntt acquired the Union Hotel and renamed it the Centennial Hotel, presumably to commemorate the nation's 100th anniversary.

In 1880, Huntt conveyed the Centennial Hotel to his father, George A. Huntt. In subsequent conveyances the parcel, now owned by the Calvert family, has been called the 'old Centennial Hotel lot.'

While the original Long Tavern probably was demolished or heavily rebuilt, it seems likely that there was a hotel on the south side of the village square at least as early as ca. 1800. Much of the material recovered last June from this area may relate to the operation of a hotel or other hospitality provider.

Jim

1 comment:

Scott said...

Could this possibly account for the seemingly conflicting photographs we see of the hotel? In one old photo, the hotel seems to be somewhat behind the Wade House and store while in an early 20th century photo, we see the hotel abutting the Wade House. Maybe it is two separate hotels from different times?