Susan’s Annapolis Tour
Description
Self guided tour
This museum dates back to 1845 and is operated by the U.S Naval Academy to preserve and share the history of the Academy with the public. The museum includes exhibits on three levels that guide visitors through a chronological tour of the Academy's history. These exhibits also include special thematic displays that explore topics that reflect the larger history of the US Navy and important themes in American history. In addition to these exhibits, the Naval Academy Museum maintains models of historic vessels and displays dedicated to various deployments and wars.
Three-story brick Georgian mansion dating from 1769-1774. ts construction was started for Samuel Chase, who would later be a signatory to the Declaration of Independence and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. However, later, Chase would sale the building unfinished to Edward Lloyd IV in 1771.
The Maryland State House is located in Annapolis and is the oldest state capitol in continuous legislative use, dating to 1779. The State House was designed by Joseph Horatio Anderson, and construction began in 1772, however, it was delayed due to the American Revolution. The cupola on top of the building was constructed in replacement for the earlier one in 1794. After the American Revolution, Annapolis was the first peacetime Capitol of the United States. The Continental Congress met in the Old Senate Chamber from November 26, 1783, to August 13, 1784. On January 14, 1784, the 1783 Treaty of Paris was ratified in Annapolis, bringing an official end to the Revolutionary War. A 1902-1905 addition by Baldwin and Pennington added new chambers for the Senate and House of Delegates.
Built in the early 1760s, the William Paca house was home to the third governor of Maryland. William Paca was one of four Maryland colonists who signed the Declaration of Independence. The Historic Annapolis Foundation restored the mansion in the 1960s and offers guided tours of the home and its garden. Visitors to the house can view historic artwork and furnishings, and enjoy a number of interpretive exhibits that offer a rare glimpse into the late colonial period and early statehood.
The Annapolis City Dock is part of a bustling waterfront area that became known as the "historic heart of Annapolis" following the designation of downtown Annapolis as a National Historic District in 1965. Established as early as 1634, by the end of the seventeenth century it served as an important port within the Chesapeake Bay region for commercial shipping and trade. The wharf area expanded in conjunction with the growth of industry in the eighteenth century, followed by rapid urban industrialization in the nineteenth century particularly at the end of the Civil War. This pattern of growth and expansion continued into the first decades of the twentieth century, and Annapolis City Dock still remains part of an essential commercial area today. With quaint shops and restaurants lining the waterfront, it is also a popular tourist destination.