Thomas Stone National Historic Site

38°31′52.2″N 77°2′21.3″W / 38.531167°N 77.039250°W / 38.531167; -77.039250EstablishedNovember 10, 1978Visitors6,351 (in 2011)Governing bodyNational Park ServiceWebsiteThomas Stone National Historic Site Location6655 Rose Hill Rd., near jct. with MD 225 and 6, Port Tobacco, MarylandArea360 acres (145.7 ha)^[1]Built1771Architectural styleGeorgianVisitation4,500 (2005)NRHP reference No.72001595Significant datesAdded to NRHPOctober 31, 1972^[2]Designated NHSNovember 10, 1978Designated NHLNovember 11, 1971^[3]

The Thomas Stone National Historic Site, also known as Haberdeventure or the Thomas Stone House, is a United States National Historic Site located about 25 miles (40 km) south of Washington D.C. in Charles County, Maryland. The site was established to protect the home and property of Founding Father Thomas Stone, one of the 56 signers of the United States Declaration of Independence. His home and estate were owned by the Stone family until 1936.

History

Stone purchased Haberdeventure in 1770 and began construction of a new home in 1771. Stone's original plan was to build a small, modest home for him, his wife Margaret, and their two daughters but before the house was completed, his father died and five of his younger brothers and sisters came to live with him at Haberdeventure creating the need for larger living quarters. During the 1780s, the Haberdeventure plantation probably supported about 25 to 35 people, including a number of slaves. By the time of Stone's death in 1787, Haberdeventure had increased in size from 442 acres (1.79 km²) to 1,077 acres (4.36 km²). Stone was buried in the family cemetery adjacent to his home.

Descendants of Thomas Stone continued to own Haberdeventure until 1936 when the land was sold.

The house was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1971.^[1][3]

The property was privately owned until 1977 when a fire severely damaged the central section of the house. Haberdeventure was authorized as a National Historic Site a year later in 1978 and was purchased by the National Park Service in 1981. Restoration efforts on the historic structures began at this time but the house was not opened to the public until 1997.

Today, a visitor center located at the site has exhibits on the Declaration of Independence and the life of Thomas Stone. Guided tours of Haberdeventure are also offered. In 2008, the Thomas Stone National Historic Site ranked 344th among 360 sites where the National Park Service tracks attendance with 5,720 visitors.^[4]

Gallery

• 
  Haberdeventure, front, winter view
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  Haberdeventure, rear view, September 2009
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  Haberdeventure, detail of original home, September 2009
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  Grave of Thomas Stone, September 2009
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  Haberdeventure, detail of main house and dependencies, from the north, 26 June 2011
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  Haberdeventure, corn crib, 26 June 2011
• 
  Artifacts on display in the parlor of the home, July 2016
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  Parlor. Portrait of Margaret Stone is replica of one by Robert Edge Pine. July 2016
• 
  A view through the bedroom into the parlor, July 2016
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  Bed in bedroom, July 2016
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  Artifacts relating to the life of Thomas Stone, July 2016
• 
  Pieces of the building's original fabric, burned in the 1977 fire, July 2016
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  The house and outbuildings, June 2009
• 
  Visitors center, July 2016

See also

• List of National Historic Landmarks in Maryland
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Charles County, Maryland

References

Federal

National battlefields	Antietam Monocacy
National historical parks	Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad
National historic sites	Clara Barton Hampton Thomas Stone
National monuments	Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine
National seashores	Assateague Island
National Park Service parks	Catoctin Mountain Fort Foote Fort Washington Glen Echo Greenbelt Harmony Hall Oxon Cove and Oxon Hill Farm Piscataway
National wildlife refuges	Blackwater Eastern Neck Glenn Martin Patuxent Research Susquehanna River
National historic and scenic trails	Appalachian Captain John Smith Chesapeake Potomac Heritage Star-Spangled Banner
Other protected areas	Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve

State

State parks	Assateague Big Run Bill Burton Fishing Pier Calvert Cliffs Canal Place Casselman River Bridge Chapel Point Cunningham Falls Dans Mountain Deep Creek Lake Elk Neck Fort Frederick Fort Tonoloway Gambrill Gathland Greenbrier Greenwell Gunpowder Falls Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Hart-Miller Island Herrington Manor Janes Island Martinak Matapeake New Germany North Point Palmer Patapsco Valley Patuxent River Pocomoke River Point Lookout Purse Rocks Rocky Gap Rosaryville Sandy Point Seneca Creek Smallwood South Mountain St. Clement's Island St. Mary's River Susquehanna Swallow Falls Tuckahoe Washington Monument Wye Oak
State forests	Cedarville Chesapeake Doncaster Elk Neck Garrett Green Ridge Mount Nebo Pocomoke Potomac Savage River Seth Stoney Wicomico
Wildlife management areas	Avondale Belle Grove Billmeyer Bodkin Island Bowen Cedar Island Cedar Point Cheltenham Chicamuxen Chicone Creek Cunningham Swamp Dan's Mountain Deal Island Devil Island Area Dierssen E.A. Vaughn Earleville Ellis Bay Fairmount Fishing Bay Fort Hill Globe Com Gravel Hill Swamp Grove Farm Gwynnbrook Heater's Island Hopkins Branch Hugg-Thomas Idylwild Indian Springs Islands of the Potomac Isle of Wight Johnson Kent Island Research Center Le Compte Linkwood Little Patuxent Oxbow Maryland Marine Properties McIntosh Run McKee-Beshers Millington Mt. Nebo Myrtle Grove Nanjemoy Nanjemoy Creek Nanticoke River Old Bohemia Parker's Creek Pocomoke River Pocomoke Sound Prather's Neck Ridenour Swamp Riverside Sideling Hill Sinepuxent Bay South Marsh Island Strider Tar Bay Taylors Island Warrior Mountain Wellington Wetipquin
Natural environment areas	Belt Woods Mattawoman Morgan Run Severn Run Soldiers Delight Youghiogheny Scenic & Wild River Zekiah Swamp

County and
municipal

Parks and sanctuaries

Acorn Allen Pond Belmont Benjamin Banneker Blandair Carroll Centennial Clifton Constitution Cromwell Valley Cylburn Arboretum David Force Dinosaur Druid Hill Fairgrounds Falls Road Federal Hill Flag Ponds Fort Smallwood Foxhill Gene Mason Generals Gwynn Oak Gwynns Falls/Leakin Hagerstown City Herring Run Jefferson Patterson Jonas Green Jug Bay Wetlands Kinder Farm Lake Artemesia Lake Elkhorn Lake Kittamaqundi Lake Roland Lakelands Liberty Reservoir Loch Raven Middle Patuxent Oregon Ridge Patterson Pen Mar Prettyboy Reservoir Quiet Waters Riverside Rockburn Branch Sligo Creek Symphony Woods Thomas A. Dixon Jr. Aircraft Observation Area Troy Wheaton Wilde Lake Wyman

Non-
governmental

Parks and sanctuaries	Battle Creek Cypress Swamp Conservation and Environmental Research Areas of UMBC Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary and Visitor's Center Mount Pleasant Farm Center Sherwood Gardens Somers Cove Marina Sugarloaf Mountain University of Maryland Arboretum & Botanical Garden Western Maryland Rail Trail Youghiogheny Scenic & Wild River
Nature centers	List