Homewood House

As we discussed our wonderful London adventures, Mr. M pointed out that there are plenty of historical properties far closer to home that we could explore. We do live just outside Washington, D.C., after all. We may not have medieval castles, but we have many buildings from the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Hmm. This made me remember that one of my favorite reference books, Steven Parissien's Regency Style mentions Homewood House numerous times. Homewood House is in Baltimore just a short (depending on traffic, of course) drive up I-95. Baltimore is also where two MacKenzie boys happen to reside at the moment. And when I actually looked at where Homewood House is in Baltimore...it turns out it's within spitting distance (not that any of us would be so uncouth as to spit) of son#3's apartment.

Road trip!

So Sunday we had a lovely brunch with two sons and one fiancée, took a quick peek at some fascinating miniatures as well as some late 18th/early 19th century items at the Baltimore Museum of Art with one son, and then headed off for a tour of Homewood House.

The only way to see Homewood House is with a guided tour, and we totally lucked out--it was just Mr. M and I and the guide. I could ask a million questions, and our wonderful guide didn't seem to mind. (I did warn her beforehand that I was a writer.) She was delighted I recognized the Argand lamps--and I was delighted to see a water-closet that looked just like the one pictured in The Soanes at Home by Susan Palmer that I'd bought at the Sir John Soane's Museum in London.