Spotlight on Molly Ridout

As we have mentioned in previous posts, one attendee of the resignation ceremony who will be featured in our exhibit is Mary "Molly" Ridout.

Molly was born in England in 1746, the second daughter of provincial Maryland governor, Samuel Ogle, and his wife, Anne Tasker Ogle. The Ogles were a prominent family, with influence in both England and Maryland throughout the eighteenth century. Molly's brother, Benjamin, later served as governor of Maryland between 1798 and 1801.

Molly's father, Samuel Ogle (c.1694-1752), Maryland State Archives, MSA SC 1545-1074.

Molly's brother, Benjamin Ogle (1749-1809), Maryland State Archives, MSA SC 1545-1071.

At age 18, Molly Ogle married John Ridout. An Oxford graduate, Ridout accompanied Governor Horatio Sharpe to Maryland as his personal secretary. Under Sharpe's patronage, Ridout quickly garnered several political positions including Judge of Probate (1761-1762) and naval officer of the Port of Annapolis (1762-1777). Upon Sharpe's departure from Maryland in 1773, the former governor left the couple his mansion, Whitehall, on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. This property, along with their Annapolis townhouse on Duke of Gloucester street known as Ridout House, played host to several social events attended by Maryland's high society.

Recent Press

A few weeks ago, we were excited to have the C-SPAN Cities Tour feature the Maryland State House in their coverage on Annapolis. The feature covers the importance of the Old Senate Chamber and some of the last video footage of the room before the scaffolding was assembled. The tour of the State House also includes information on the Old House of Delegates chamber, the New Annex, and the grounds. You can view the feature on the State House below.

For more information on Washington's resignation speech, the Maryland Constitution of 1864 debated in the Old House of Delegates Chamber, and historical documents related to the life of Frederick Douglass, please view the C-SPAN feature on the Maryland State Archives.

George Washington in Bronze

Yesterday, we had our kick-off meeting with New York-based Studio EIS who will be designing the bronze statue of George Washington, which will be placed in the spot where he stood to resign his commission on December 23, 1783. Along with Washington, Studio EIS will also be creating a faux-bronze statue of Annapolitan Molly Ridout, who watched the resignation from the visitor's gallery in the chamber.

The creation of a lifelike historic statue requires a precise blend of detailed research and creativity. Studio EIS has a large amount of experience with creating lifelike statues of historical figures, including Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Abraham Lincoln. Their work also appears at Mt. Vernon, Monticello, Montpelier and on the steps of the New York Historical Society. Last April, members of our project team were able to visit their studio to see their remarkable work by their talented artists and to discuss the design and fabrication process.

The National Constitution Center's Signers' Hall features 42 bronze figures, all created by Studio EIS. Image courtesy of Studio EIS.

Construction Begins

Though the blog has been quiet for some time now, work on the Old Senate Chamber has continued behind the scenes. Architectural investigations have concluded and the restoration of this historic space is about to begin! This upcoming work will return the room back to its architectural appearance when Congress convened in the chamber in 1783-1784.

Over the past nine months, architects and scholars have analyzed all extant evidence from the 18th, 19th and 20th century renovations in this space, exposing a tremendous amount of original building materials. This work has included the removal of nearly all of the recognizable architecture from the 1905 and 1940 restorations, including floor, paint and plaster, ceiling, and visitor's gallery. More accurate versions of each of these elements, and many others, will be recreated as part of the restoration.

The niche was covered for its protection during some of the architectural investigations. One of the windows has also been transformed into a construction entrance, 30 January 2013.

 As you can see from the photographs, elaborate scaffolding now covers most of the chamber. This will allow the contractors and specialized tradesmen access to all areas within the room.

Image of the scaffolding now up in the Old Senate Chamber, 5 September 2013.

The Old Senate Chamber is scheduled to reopen to the public in December 2014, the 231st anniversary of George Washington's resignation of his commission.

As construction proceeds, we plan to chronicle the restoration with entries on the history and architecture of the chamber, as well as the people and processes involved in returning this space to its original appearance. Special features will also highlight the new interpretive exhibits that will be unveiled as part of this restoration.

Please stay tuned for more updates!

Recent Press

Below is the most recent video from MPT's State Circle, which documented the deconstruction of the gallery in the Old Senate Chamber. Many of the pieces of the 1905 gallery have been salvaged and cataloged and both of the original 18th century columns will be reused in restoration. A big thanks goes out to Lou Davis and MPT for continuing to document the progress of the project. You can view their first video here.

The full episode of State Circle will air January 11th at 7:30pm on
Maryland Public Television.

OSC Gallery: More Elegant than Required

Image courtesy of Jay Baker, 2009.

On Monday, the present gallery in the Old Senate Chamber will be deconstructed in order to further investigate the space and prepare the room for its ultimate restoration. As mentioned in previous posts, the current gallery was a 1905 reconstruction of what the architect, John Appleton Wilson, believed to be its original 1777 appearance.

Ratcliffe Manor

In March of 1894, an article titled, "Should be Restored: The Original Appearance of the Old Senate Chamber" appeared in the Baltimore Sun describing the proposed restoration to when Washington resigned his commission as commander-in-chief of the continental army and the renewed sense of patriotism and preservation shared among the citizens of Maryland. The article notes that the project had created "widespread interest and has been the subject of much favorable comment in Baltimore" and the author interviewed several of its residents. Included was a special dispatch to the Sun from Annapolis stating:

“The committee has ascertained that the sashes which were taken from the windows of the State House by Governor Carroll were bought by the late R.C. Holliday [sic] and sent by him to his farm near Easton. Mr. Mayer has written to Senator Charles H. Gibson, who now has the farm to ask him whether the sashes are still there and whether one of them can be procured for a pattern.”

Ratcliffe Manor, circa 1950s.
Pusey Collection, Talbot County Free Library.