Baltimore
has become one of our favorite stops on the Chesapeake. The Fells Point area where we stay is full of
good bars and restaurants and is close to the Inner Harbor. There is no lack of things to do or choices
for good food. We saw the movie “Sully”,
and can highly recommend it, particularly to our aviation oriented friends.
After
an enjoyable 3 days in town we moved on to the Chester River on the Eastern
shore of the bay. Our first night there
we anchored in a quiet bay on Reed Creek.
It was a still evening with a good moon and we were treated to over
flights by eagles. The following day we
completed the 28 mile trek up river to Chestertown.
Chestertown
is home to the SULTANA, a reproduction of
a Boston-built merchant vessel that served for 4 years in the British Royal Navy. It was used from 1768-1772 to enforce the “Tea
Taxes”. It is one of the most accurate reproductions
of an 18th century schooner in existence.
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| 18th Century Schooner SULTANA |
250
years ago Chestertown was a thriving river port and Royal Port of Entry. In those times it was a convenient stop for
people traveling from Virginia to New York or Philadelphia. As a result George Washington is known to
have stayed here on at least 8 different occasions. Many of the stately homes built in that era
still exist today in well preserved condition.
Washington College was established here at the conclusion of the
Revolution. George was instrumental in
its founding and served on the Board for 5 years. Time has passed the town by in terms of
commerce, but it is still vibrant as home to the college and a large contingent
of retirees.
Below
are pictures of a small sampling of homes dating back to the 1700s. The Hynson –Ringgold House was constructed in
1743 and was later acquired by Thomas Ringgold a wealthy merchant and Maryland
legislator. Since 1944 it has been owned
by the college and used as the residence of the college president. The Wickes House was built in 1767. The mantles of its 15 fireplaces, moldings and
floors are all original. The Nicholson
House was built in 1788. The three
Nicholson brothers were prominent members of the Continental Navy. John was the commander of the sloop
Hornet, James was head of the
continental Navy from 1776-1785 and Sam supervised the construction of the battleship
Constitution in the 1790s.
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| Wickes House 1767 |
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| Hynson-Ringghold House 1743 |
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| Nicholson House 1788 |
We left
Chestertown on a rainy Monday passing through Kent Narrows on our way to an
anchorage off the Wye River. We will
spend the remainder of the week visiting Oxford and Cambridge on the Choptank River.
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| Suinset at the end of a rainy day. Lloyd Creek off the Wye River |
