Phase II and Phase III Archaeological Database and Inventory
18PR982 Magruder House
Diagnostic Artifact Data
Features
Summary
The Magruder House Site (18PR982), also known as the “Old Stone House” or the “William Hilleary House” consists primarily of the mid-18th to 20th century archeological deposits associated with a ca. 1742 stone house in Bladensburg, Prince George’s County. Early Archaic and Late Woodland short-term camps have also been recognized at the site. The Magruder House (MIHP# PG:69-7) is listed on the National Register of Historic places as the William Hilleary House. The north facing stone house was constructed into a slope and is 1 ½ stories high on the north side and 2 ½ stories on the south. The surrounding landscape is heavy developed: a typical urban landscape for Prince George’s County. A white picket fence separates the lot from a paved road and a driveway and parking area are located along the west side of the house. The east side of the house is flanked by an exit ramp for a major highway. A small spring is located to the south of the house, which is in a wooded area. This wooded area has been heavily impacted by construction of a highway exit ramp. Soils at the site are mapped as urban land and Zekiah silt loams.
The Magruder House was built for William Hilleary ca. 1742. Hilleary had the house built as an investment property on Lot 32 within the original town of Bladensburg. Hilleary sold the house in 1763 to Richard Henderson, who was the first known inhabitant of the house. George Washington may have visited the house on May 9th, 1787. Washington noted in his diary that he dined with Richard Henderson, the owner of Magruder House at the time. This visit took place during Washington’s travel to the constitutional convention in Philadelphia beginning in May of 1787. Washington wrote, “Wednesday 9th. Crossed from Mt. Vernon to Mr. Digges a little after Sun rise & pursuing the rout by the way of Baltimore—dined at Mr. Richd Hendersons in Bladensbg. And lodged at Muir. Snowdens where feeling very severely a violent hd. Ach & sick stomach I went to bed early.”
Henderson lived on the Magruder House property with his family and 25 slaves, some of whom may also have resided in the house. Henderson was a Scottish merchant who served as the Bladensburg representative of the John Glassford Company. Richard Henderson and his business partner, Dr. David Ross, oversaw the import of goods to Bladensburg and the export of tobacco to Europe. David Ross died in 1778. Henderson occupied the house until he sold it to David Ross, Jr. in 1793.
David Ross, Jr., who earned a law degree in 1783, had served as a Major in the Revolutionary War and as a Delegate to the Continental Congress. The 1793- 1794 tax assessments note that David Ross, Jr., owned 35 enslaved people of African descent. The 1798 tax records indicate that the property included a 26 X 20 ft log wash house and quarter, a 16 X 12 ft frame milk house, a 16 X 16 ft stone meat house, a 12 X 12 ft frame hen house, an 18 X 18 ft frame stall, and a 10 X 12 ft shed in addition to the main house on a 3 acre parcel. Dr. Ross occupied the house until 1799 when he sold all his possessions to pay his debts. He died in 1800.
Through most of the early 19th century the occupants of Magruder House are unknown as it appears the owners did not live there, but purchased the property as an investment. The house reportedly played a part in the Battle of Bladensburg on August 24th, 1814, a key battle during the War of 1812. Oral history claims that it may have been a site of civilian resistance to advancing British soldiers and that the house might have been used as a field hospital after the battle. No documentation supporting these claims has ever been found, but based on the number of wounded after the battle, it is possible that it and many of the still extant historic structures may have served as temporary field hospitals.
In 1836, Howarton and Susan Cross purchased the Maguder property and adjacent lots to the south. It is possible that the Crosses lived in the Magruder House with their children. In 1847, the Crosses sold the house. The owners between 1847 and 1853 lived outside of Bladensburg. From around 1850 to 1853, Dr. Benjamin Day may have lived in the Magruder House.
Dr. Archibald and Narcissa Magruder purchased the house from James T. Clark in 1853. The couple had six children and held up to 8 African-American slaves by 1860. It is not known whether or not any of the slaves occupied the house, though it is likely that they loved on the property with the Magurders. Archibald Magruder died in 1863 and left the house to his wife. Narcissa Magruder occupied the house until her return to Baltimore in 1880. The occupant of the house for the remainder of the 19th century is unknown and it was thought to have been and investment property.
In 1918, Baxter and Alice Denny purchased the property from Anna Loffler and moved into the house. In 1940, the Dennys sold the property to Guiseppe and Grazia Gugliotta. The Magruder house was rented out by the State Roads Commission for many years and then was sold to Prince George’s Heritage. In 1982, the Magruder house underwent restoration under the direction of Prince George’s Heritage.
The first documented archeological investigation at 18PR982 occurred in November of 2008. It entailed a ground penetrating radar (GPR) survey of the grounds surrounding the house. The survey made use of a GSSI SIR 200 Ground Penetrating Radar set at 400 MHz that was tracked along intervals of 0.25 meters. The tracking lines and elevations were surveyed using a Leica TCR307 total station. Five anomalies of potential archeological interest were found within the Magruder House grounds. Correlating archeological or geological features to the 2008 identified anomalies was one of the goals of archeological fieldwork that was carried out in the spring of 2009. In 2009, major field investigations were carried out at 3 historic sites in Bladensburg (one of which was 18PR982) by the Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA) along with the Center for Heritage Resources Studies at the University of Maryland (CHRS) with assistance from archeological contracting firms. Portions of the sites are located on state-owned land (highway right-of-way). In addition, the Maryland Historical Trust holds a preservation easement on the property. The work was carried out as part of the outreach for the War of 1812 bicentennial celebration to determine the location, type and integrity of features and artifacts related to these three properties. It was hoped that additional historical information would aid in a fuller understanding of the sites, their relation to each other and to other historic properties in Bladensburg, and the War of 1812. All three sites had been the subject of the prior GPR study.
The 2009 field investigations consisted of mechanical removal of pavement and fill, and manual excavation of shovel test pits (STPs), test units, and features. At 18PR982, twenty-one STPs and seven 1.52 X 1.52 m (5 x 5 ft) square test units around the extant house. STPs were approximately 46 cm (1.5 ft) round tests and were excavated by stratigraphic levels to a depth of at least 122 cm (4 ft) or the identification of a non-culture bearing soil horizon. STPs were placed on a 7.62 m (25 ft) grid extended across the site. The placement of test units was determined through analysis of the results of the shovel test data and the 2008 GPR survey. Three of the five GPR anomalies identified during 2008 were deemed to have “high” archeological potential and were investigated with test units.
Test units were excavated in 9.14 cm (0.3 ft) levels within natural strata. In general, testing extended to the depth of sterile subsoil or rock. Any identified features were mapped and photographed, and small features were bisected or (as needed) excavated in their entirety. Large soil features were sampled based on the portion of the feature that fell within test unit boundaries. Masonry features were mapped, photographed, and generally left in place. Soils recovered from STPs, test units, and features were screened through hardware cloth for uniform recovery of artifacts. Soil samples were collected for flotation from contexts that had a potential to yield information about historic foodways. Additional soil samples were collected for palynology analysis.
Two distinct soil profiles were recognized within the STPs and test units. To the south of the house (the back yard) the stratigraphy included layers of modern and historic fill with construction debris and domestic waste discarded by the former occupants of the Magruder House. The south yard may also include slope wash and/or flood deposits. The yard to the east of the house is higher in elevation than the south yard and has more intact natural horizons. Seventeen features were identified within the Magruder Site. Thirteen features were historic, one was modern, and three were natural. Historic cultural features included two post holes, three trenches, four pit features, three amorphous soil stains or artifact concentrations, and a gravel path.
In total, 266 prehistoric artifacts were recovered during archeological investigations at the Magruder House. These include 4 projectile points/knives (2 identifiable as a St. Albans), 2 bifaces, 3 scrapers, 4 utilized/retouched flakes, 1 core, 241 pieces of lithic debitage, 4 pieces of fire-cracked rock, and 7 ceramic sherds (including 1 Townsend body sherd and 1 Potomac Creek rim sherd). Lithic raw materials were primarily quartzite (104 objects), quartz (66), metarhyolite (65), chert (11), orthoquartzite (10), siltstone (2), and ironstone (1). The diagnostic materials point to occupations during the Early Archaic and
Late Woodland. Possible Early Woodland occupation is indicated by the presence of sand-tempered sherds, however, Late Woodland sherds (some of which are present in the assemblage) can also sometimes contain sand tempering. The prehistoric occupations probably represent a series of short-term or seasonal campsites. However, most of the prehistoric artifacts were found alongside historic artifacts. This indicates that the site was disturbed or mixed (e.g. plowed) in the historic or modern era.
The historic artifact assemblage recovered during the 2009 excavations at 18PR982 consisted of 365 activity items, 6,235 architectural artifacts, 51 clothing items, 8 furniture objects, 3,433 ceramic sherds, 1,446 kitchen glass fragments, 4,416 likely kitchen-related faunal remains, 12 other kitchen remains, 49 personal items, 90 tobacco-related artifacts, 37 arms objects, and 621 miscellaneous objects. In addition, 489 floral remains were recovered from test units and soil/flotation sampling. For more information on the archeobotanical assemblage from the site, see the linked ethnobotany profile for the site.
The activity items include 33 porcelain doll parts, 5 ceramic marbles, a plastic headlight cover, 3 bale seals, 83 miscellaneous hardware objects, 112 lighting glass an lamp parts, 118 flower pot fragments, and 10 other objects. The architectural assemblage consisted of 1,482 brick fragments, 224 pieces of mortar, 2,231 pieces of window glass, a brass pipe link, a lead pipe, 81 pieces of ceramic sewer pipe, 4 wrought nails, 1 cut or wrought nail, 794 cut nails, 614 wire nails, 1 copper wire nail, 762 other nails, 5 spike, 3 door parts, and 31 finishing materials. Clothing items were a copper alloy needle, 14 copper alloy straight pins, 2 copper alloy thimbles, an iron buckle, 27 buttons (10 copper alloy, 3 plastic, 1 cellulose, 9 porcelain, 1 bone, and 3 shell), 2 copper alloy clasps, 1 copper alloy strap keeper, 2 grommets, and a zipper pull. Furniture objects were a caster wheel, 2 brass knobs, a possible iron drawer pull, a clock hand, 2 porcelain fixtures, and a possible porcelain fixture. The ceramic sherd assemblage consisted of 20 Buckley, 17 Jackfield, 65 tin-glazed earthenware, 3 Manganese mottled sherds, 2 Staffordshire slipware, 2 Agate ware, 5 Whieldon ware, 12 buff-paste coarse earthenware, 784 creamware, 735 pearlware, 172 refined white-paste earthenware, 313 porcelain, 8 refined redware, 140 redware, 16 yelloware, 635 whiteware, 4 ironstone, 155 white granite, 191 white saltglazed stoneware, 8 Nottingham stoneware, 47 English Brown stoneware, 5 Rhenish brown stoneware, 16 Rhenish gray stoneware, 4 Bristol slip stoneware, 22 Albany slip stoneware, and 54 miscellaneous stoneware sherds. The faunal remains included 1 unidentified mollusk, 96 clams, 663 Eastern oyster shell fragments, 61 ray-finned fish bones, 2 channel catfish bones, 2 turtle bones, 2 wild turkey bones, 292 bird bones, 2,183 mammal bones (various sizes), 6 Cottontail rabbit bones, 3 squirrel bones, 46 cow bones, 31 sheep/goat bones, 32 sheep bones, 95 pig bones, 10 even-toed ungulate bones, and 891 unidentified vertebrate bones. In addition, 1 snail shell and 7 rodent/rat bones were encountered, but these were counted with the miscellaneous finds in the tables above. The 12 other kitchen-related artifacts were 4 aluminum pull tabs, 1 key-style can opener, a porcelain salt or pepper shaker, 1 knife, 1 spoon, 2 utensil handles, an unidentified utensil, and 1 undescribed object. Personal items were 2 pieces of mirror glass, 15 porcelain figurine fragments, a possible glass vase, 2 plastic comb pieces, 2 writing stationary items, a flask cap, a pocket knife, 14 medicine containers, 4 glass beads, a George III half-penny, an 1882 penny, 3 20th century pennies, a 1916 dime, and a Chinese coin (ca.1890-1908). The tobacco-related artifacts were 35 ball clay pipe bowls, 26 4/64” ball clay stems, 21 5/64” ball clay stems, 5 6/64” ball clay stems, and 3 other ball clay pipe stem fragments. The arms objects were 35 shell casings and one lead shot fragment. Miscellaneous finds included 219 pieces of coal, 69 clinkers, 13 pieces of slag, 266 metal objects, 20 unidentified glass items, 2 pieces of slate, 24 modern objects, the 8 aforementioned faunal remains, and 1 unidentified object.
The historical records indicate (and are supported by the archeology) that the extant house was constructed around 1742 and that the property has been continuously occupied to the present. The Magruder property was initially only 1 acre, and 2 acres were later added to the south. The southern acres primarily consisted of lowland and meadow. The long period of occupation and the presence of mixed contexts complicate a determination of which portions of the assemblage can be positively identified with specific owners or inhabitants. However, some general associations can provide insight into the historic periods at the Magruder House.
The mid-18th-century Hilleary ownership (1742-1763) did not produce many artifacts that could be securely dated to this period. The historic ceramics were recognizable, but the faunal remains and artifacts with broader periods of manufacture were harder to attribute. During this period the Magruder House may have been occupied by tenants. The Henderson and Ross ownership tenures (1763-1802) represent a period in the late 18th century when the wealthy merchant owners of the Magruder House resided on the property with their families and enslaved African Americans. Distinguishing between the Henderson and Ross assemblages was not possible because the same wares were in production through both occupations (notably creamware and pearlware). Separate strata within this time period were not distinguished.
According to 1798 tax records, the property at that time included a variety of outbuildings, including a log wash house and quarter, frame milk house, stone meat house, frame hen house, frame stall, and a shed on the 3 acre parcel. It is unclear if these buildings were added during Richard Henderson’s ownership (1763-1793) or David Ross, Jr.'s period of ownership (1793-1802). No clear evidence of outbuilding locations was found in the feature or artifact distributions identified during the archeological investigation. Artifacts of all functional groups and all time periods are tightly concentrated behind the house and near the back door. No stone foundations were found to indicate the location of the meat house. Eighteenth to early 19th century features within the Magruder site consist of refuse pits and architectural debris concentrations. One trench is also present. It appears that the area tested may have been used as a work yard during the 18th to early 19th century. Outbuildings noted in tax records from 1798 were likely located further from the house in areas not tested. Highway or parking lot construction may have disturbed the outbuildings.
The early 19th century is represented by a series of tenant occupations (1803-1853). No distinct contexts date to this period, although early ceramics such as multiple pearlware fragments with polychrome painted designs in blue, orange, and brown may indicate that the occupants used matched sets.
The Magruder family owned and occupied the house from 1853-1880. No distinct contexts or features can be associated with this period. In general, the 19th century assemblage showed an increase in artifact quantity and a continuation of the domestic nature of the site.
The later domestic occupation of the Magruder House (1880-1954) is represented by tenant and owner occupations. Separate strata within this time period were not distinguished. To the south of the house, multiple modern fill strata to a depth of 30.5 cm (1 ft) or more were observed, along with alternating layers of pebble gravel. This low portion of the property flooded in the past prior to highway construction. The fill and gravel deposits, as well as several trench features, may represent attempts by the occupants to control water.
Additional research was conducted at Magruder house in 2012 and 2014. The 2012 research was part of a Phase I survey carried out along MD 450 from the Peace Cross to 57th Avenue in Bladensburg. The research was in advance of community enhancement improvements along the highway within a 25-foot wide LOD (limit of disturbance) corridor. Radial testing extended up to 100 meters outside the LOD, including onto the Magurder House property. The planned roadside improvements included: the reconstruction if the intersection of MD 450 and MD 202, the construction of a landscaped median along MD 450, the widening of MD 450 to include bicycle compatible lanes/shoulders, sidewalk repair/rehabilitation/modification to ensure ADA compliance, installation of pedestrian lighting, and the consolidation of driveways for commercial properties along MD 450. Investigations were conducted in accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 as amended and the Maryland Historical Trust Act of 1985 (state law).
Phase I work in 2012 at 18PR982 entailed the excavation of three STPs at 10 m intervals along a single transect 6 m south of MD 450 and in the western half of the site’s road frontage. STPs measured 50 X 50 cm in size and, where possible, were excavated at least 15 cm into sterile Pleistocene soils. Soils were screened through hardware cloth. Obviously modern (post 1960) artifacts were noted on forms and discarded in the field. Historic and prehistoric artifacts were placed in bags labeled with the provenience information. Field data were recorded on standard field forms and in general field notes. The forms included soil color, soil texture, profiles, features present, artifacts recovered, excavator’s initials, and the date of excavation. The locations of STPs were noted on field maps and recorded with a Trimble GeoXH GPS unit.
Two of the three STPs produced artifacts. A total of 38 items (36 of which were historic) were recovered. The full assemblage consisted of 3 activity items (barbed wire), 1 clothing item (a porcelain button), 16 architectural artifacts (including 2 ceramic pipe sherds, 1 brick fragment, 3 window glass fragments, 1 possible wrought nail, 4 cut nails, 1 wire nail, and 4 other nails), 7 sherds (3 tin-glazed earthenware, 1 whiteware), 2 kitchen glass fragments, 6 oyster shell fragments, and 2 pieces of quartz debitage.
The Cultural Resources Section of the Maryland Department of Transportation’s State Highway Administration (SHA) undertook supplemental archaeological investigations in 2014 of the Magruder House site (18PR982). The 2014 investigations included three additional STPs and four TUs in the east yard of the Magruder House. These excavations coincided with the War of 1812 celebration in Bladensburg and contributed to public outreach.
The supplemental investigation included the excavation of three shovel test pits and four 5-x-5-foot square test units east of the extant house in a portion of the site that had been found in 2009 to retain more stratigraphic integrity than areas to the south of the house. STPs were approximately 1.5-foot round tests excavated by stratigraphic levels to the base of culture-bearing soil strata. Test units were excavated in 0.3-ft levels within natural stratigraphy. Features were sampled or excavated in their entirety based on the portion of the feature that fell within TU boundaries. Soils recovered from STPs, TUs, and features were screened through 1⁄4-inch hardware cloth for uniform recovery of artifacts. Soil samples were collected for flotation from contexts that had a potential to yield information about historic foodways.
The investigation resulted in recovery of 322 prehistoric artifacts, 5,791 historic and modern artifacts, 489 faunal remains, and 13 floral remains. Twelve features were identified during the 2014 excavations. Three of the identified features appear to be natural root casts, seven date to the twentieth century, and two appear to date to the early to mid- nineteenth century. Historic features consist of a stone-lined gravel path, two pit features, and two possible posts. Artifacts and features span the historic period of occupation from the mid-eighteenth century through to the present.
A little more than half (n=180, 56 percent) of the prehistoric artifacts were found in Strata IV and V, a Bw horizon containing minimal numbers of historic materials that were likely introduced through root or rodent disturbance or movement of artifacts downward in the sandy soils. Significant amounts of prehistoric artifacts were also found in Stratum III (n=90), the late eighteenth to early nineteenth century deposit, suggesting this layer is mixed such as from roots or other processes. Diagnostic prehistoric artifacts range in date from the Middle Archaic through the Late Woodland periods. In total, 313 prehistoric lithics were recovered from 18PR982. Lithics include debitage (n=255), fire cracked rock (FCR; n=43), flaked stone tools (n=10), ground/battered stone (n=3), and cores/tested material (n=2). Materials identified among the Magruder lithics include argillite, chert, indeterminate metavolcanic, metarhyolite, orthoquartzite, quartz, quartzite, and sandstone.
The flaked stone tools (n=10) included five projectile points/knives, two bifaces, two scrapers, and one retouched/utilized debitage. The projectile points/knives included a quartz Middle Archaic Stanley Stemmed point, a rhyolite Late Archaic Brewerton Side Notched point, a rhyolite Late Archaic Savannah River point, a quartzite Late Archaic Lamoka point, and a chert Late Woodland Levanna point.
Nine prehistoric ceramic sherds were recovered from 18PR982. Three of the sherds were identified as possible Mockley, the other six sherds were unidentifiable.
In total, 5,791 historic and modern artifacts were recovered from the 2014 excavations at Site 18PR982 including Kitchen (n=2642), Architectural (n=2517), Miscellaneous (n=346), Activities (n=145), Furniture (n=62), Personal (n=25), Tobacco (n=23), Clothing (n=23), and Arms (n=8).
Window glass (n=1,221) and nails (n=1,128) make up the bulk of the architectural assemblage. Brick and mortar were sampled, counted, weighed, and discarded. Of the identifiable nails, 59 are wrought (pre 1816), 166 are cut (1790-1920), 122 are square (either cut or wrought; pre 1920), and 241 are wire.
The majority of the kitchen group artifacts are unspecified glass fragments (n=1,617) and ceramics (n=847). Other items include glass bottle or jar fragments (n=119), table glass fragments (n=33), aluminum, iron, plastic, and zinc bottle caps and liners (n=24), an iron food can key, and a copper alloy spoon. The 847 ceramic sherds represent a range of eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth century ware types, which is consistent with the long occupation of the Magruder House. Pearlware (n=259), creamware (n=158) and whiteware (n=139) are the most numerous ceramics.
The miscellaneous group includes a variety of materials, such as coal, clinker, slag, plastic, and glass whose condition or fragmentary nature prevented determination of a form. The 145 activity items represent a variety of items related to electricity, transportation, commerce, sewing, and toys and entertainment. Most of the furniture-related artifacts are related to lighting, including lamp chimney fragments (n=11), light bulb fragments (n=7), and general lighting glass fragments that may have been part of lamps, light bulbs, sconces, or lamp chimneys (n=13).
Twenty-five items were recovered from the personal group, including items in the jewelry/ accessories, coins, toiletries, writing implements, and medicine subcategories. Twenty-two tobacco pipe fragments and one possible lead alloy tobacco seal were recovered. Pipe fragments included nine ball clay pipe bowl fragments, 12 ball clay pipe stems, and a stoneware pipe bowl fragment. The tobacco bale seal is round and would have been used to indicate quality or quantity and manufacturer.
The clothing-related artifacts include 17 buttons, two rivets, three shoe nails, and a snap, which date from the late eighteenth century to the twentieth century. The eight arms-related artifacts consist of copper alloy shell casings.
There were 489 animal remains recovered during the 2014 excavations at the Magruder House. These included 387 mammal bones, 26 bird bones, 55 mollusk shells, and five fossilized shark teeth. Sixteen elements were identified only as vertebrates.
In general, the results of the 2014 supplemental testing supported the interpretations and conclusions from the previous testing completed in 2009. The focus of the 2014 excavations east of the house, however, resulted in the identification of somewhat better stratified deposits than was found to the south of the house in 2009; in particular, separate late nineteenth to early twentieth century and prehistoric strata were identified. Considerable post depositional mixing, however, was evident with approximately 44 percent of the prehistoric artifacts recovered in association with historic and modern materials and mid-eighteenth through mid-nineteenth century artifacts found together in one stratum.
No formal determination has been made as to the NRHP eligibility of Site 18PR982.
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