Maryland

Keedy House And Cottage, Boonsboro, Washington County, Maryland

(a) Keedy House (39.53959, -77.698585) Winter 1775/6, Spring 1777

(a) Keedy Cottage (39.539694, -77.698923) Spring 1809

(a) Joists 1775 (28C, 23C), 1771(15), 1763, 1759; Rafters 1776(¼C3); Tiebeams (0/2). (b) Fireplace lintel 1808(15¼C); Joists 1808(19¼C), 1805(13), 1803(10), 1791(H/S). Site Master 1643-1808 KEEDSITE (t = 8.5 ALLENS; 6.9 MKF; 6.4 WATCH; 6.2 FORES).

Description: The 2 1/2-story Keedy House faces south, built of coursed gray stone. The house is three bays wide and two deep. The entrance is in the east bay with a single 9/9 light window with heavy muntins in each of the other bays. The easternmost window in the second floor has 6/6 lights while the other two are modern 1/1 sash. The frames of the windows and door are very plain and held together with wood pins. Surmounting each window is a stone segmental arch. Flanking the center window in the second floor are small, arched recesses, perhaps intended to contain date markers. A brick chimney pierces the gable roof between the center and east bays. Over the doorway is a small one-story porch with square posts and railings. The west end has two windows on each floor, variously 6/6, 12/8, and 1/1, with a central 6-light casement in the gable. The first story on the north side is built partially into the hillside. There is a door in the west bay and a 6/6 window in the center, with another 6/6 window over these. A shed-roofed screened porch covers the first story. Projecting from the east bay is a one-room addition with a 6/6 light window on the west side. The north end of the addition has an inside end chimney, brick above the roofline. The east side of the addition has a door and 6/6 window. The east end of the main house has two 9/6 windows on the first floor and 6/6 windows above, with a 6-light casement in the gable. West of the house is a small stone bank house, two bays by two bays, with a two-story porch, known as the Keedy Cottage. Significance: Probably built soon after 1791, the house is an extant example of the type of farmhouse built in Washington County during the 18th and early 19th centuries. It is a two story house with small rooms, built of the gray stone found in the county. This brief description could be that of any number of farmers' homes that once dotted the countryside and it stands as a visible reminder of the families who lived and farmed in this area. As such, the Keedy House is significant as an example of the vernacular architecture of the late 18th century. (National Register: 74000972 (7/25/1974)

Miles, D H, and Worthington, M J, 2007 “The Tree-Ring Dating of Keedy House and Cottage, Boonsboro, Washington County, Maryland ”, ODL unpubl rep 2007/7.

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