The Custom House
The Custom House, 2004
The Custom House, ca. 1900
The Custom House, located at 101 S. Water Street in Chestertown, is a distinctive eighteenth-century building constructed by Chestertown merchant Samuel Massey in 1745. In 1749, Massey sold the property to Thomas Ringgold IV, a member of the House of Burgesses, attorney, land speculator, slave trader and merchant who imported goods from Europe and the West Indies. In 1771, Ringgold built an addition onto the rear of the building, which was used as the residence, while the front was converted to a dry good store. Prior to the Revolution, Ringgold rented out space to the District Customs Collector, which was probably located in an adjoining building that was torn down and replaced the early 1900s. It was from this association that the Custom House got its name.
After Thomas Ringgold's death in 1771, the house stayed in the Ringgold family until 1794, when it was sold to William Sluby, another merchant. Simon Wickes, a prominent resident of Chestertown, acquired the property in 1805, and it stayed in his family until 1853, when it was sold to Senator James Alfred Pearce. Pearce, a former sugar planter, practiced law in Chestertown and was elected to Congress in 1835. In 1843, he was elected to the Senate, serving until his death in 1862. He was an avid supporter of education, and served on Washington College's Board of Visitors of Governors for many years.
When Chestertown declined in economic importance in the late nineteenth century, the Custom House was converted into apartments. Fortunately, many of the original details of the house were restored by local preservationist Wilbur Ross Hubbard, using funds provided by the Maryland Historical Trust. When Hubbard died in 1993, he bequeathed to Washington College the landmark property. The Custom House is recognized on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Custom House is home to the C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience, the Center for the Environment and Society, and the Washington College Archaeology Lab.