SPECIAL TO THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Sometimes a trip to a new place can spark more than a memory. Occasionally, it can provoke some new vocabulary. In that case, “juxtaposition” is a good word to have on hand if you venture to Marietta House Museum In Prince George’s County.
The idea of placing contrasting and sometimes even incongruous items together is very much in evidence at the home once occupied by Revolutionary War veteran and later Supreme Court Justice Gabriel Duvall (1752-1844). That’s particularly true this month, when the mansion’s broad front lawn will be occupied by a succession of troops that might well have surprised that notable gentleman had he found time to peer out his law office door or front room window.
Duvall was no stranger to soldiering, but he probably would be taken aback to see members of the XX Legion strolling by next Saturday and Sunday. That’s because these are Roman soldiers — read ancient Rome — and they’ll be dealing in tunics and togas rather than fifes and drums. Then, on Sept. 29, a World War I and World War II encampment moves in with a vengeance.
Even without the re-enactors, juxtapositions abound at Marietta, which was built between 1812 and 1816. Obviously, there’s the very modern pairing of what must have been an elegant approach to a home with the dull roar of automobiles from the busy highway just a stone’s throw away. Yet it’s still quiet enough to imagine how a trip to the estate would have been.
Entertaining was an important activity for Marietta’s owner, a descendent of French Huguenots who came to Maryland in the mid-17th century. By the early 19th century, Duvall was well established as a lawyer and jurist, and the likes of James and Dolley Madison, Henry Clay and other prominent figures were flocking to Marietta for fine dining and conversation. (Duvall’s law office still exists, one of the surviving outbuildings on an estate that once encompassed four farms.)
As a Supreme Court justice and a follower of Chief Justice John Marshall, Duvall, who was appointed to the bar in 1811, earned a reputation as one of the “silent justices,” although he stubbornly held onto his seat until he was deaf and well into his 80s, fearing that a less conservative justice might be appointed in his stead.
Inside Marietta, different rooms have been restored to reflect different eras from the Duvall family occupancy. (The last Duvall descendent left in 1902.)
The dining room, for example, has been presented as a period piece from about the time when Duvall lived in the home with his second wife, Jane Gibbon. You’ll see pieces of Baltimore painted furniture, distinctive with their upside-down carved bellflowers. The arrangement of windows, gilt and mirrors ensured there was plenty of light in an age before electricity.
Then there’s the bedroom that housed two of the Duvall grandchildren, who moved there after their father died in 1831. It has a number of things you might expect from two rambunctious boys roaming the countryside — a couple of bird’s nests, Indian arrowheads and a very large tortoise shell.
Downstairs, the parlor has been fitted out for the period from about the 1870s, a time when the current Mrs. Duvall, who was married to Gabriel’s grandson Edmund, decided to eschew the old simplicity and add a bit of style. Rich reds cover the settee, and the place is filled with reminders of the mid- to late Victorian era, including a five-piece furniture set and a Moeller pump organ.
Once outside again, you’ll see the juxtaposition of some of the modest still-remaining outbuildings — including a root cellar — with the more imposing Federal period edifice, whose symmetry was altered over the years by two additions.
Then there’s the family graveyard, just a short distance away from the main house. In it you’ll find glimpses of what it was like to live before modern medicine. In contrast to Gabriel’s longevity, some of his descendents did not fare as well. Like many of his day, Gabriel had two wives, having lost the first in 1790. You’ll see the grave of his second wife, said to have been the perfect political spouse, beside him on the right. On the left, where you might expect to see the remains of wife No. 1, you’ll see instead the remains of … his horse.
And that may be the most unexpected juxtaposition of all.
WHEN YOU GO:
LOCATION: The museum is located at 5626 Bell Station Road in Glenn Dale.
Directions: From the Beltway, take the exit for Route 450 east (Annapolis Road). Follow Annapolis Road for about four miles and turn left onto Route 193 west. Turn left onto Bell Station Road. Marietta is the first driveway on the left.
Hours: Marietta House Museum is open for public tours from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Fridays and from noon to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Weekday group tours are available by appointment. The museum is closed on Easter, Dec. 24, 25 and 31 and Jan. 1.
Admission: $3 for adults, $2 for seniors, $1 for children age 5 to 18, children 4 and younger admitted free.
More information: 301/464-5291; www.pgparks.com
Please read our comment policy before commenting.