St. Thomas Manor (1741) is a historic home and

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

church complex located near

Port Tobacco Port Tobacco, officially Port Tobacco Village, is a town in Charles County, in southern Maryland, United States. The population was 13 at the 2010 census, making Port Tobacco the smallest incorporated town in Maryland. Overview This was historical ...

Charles County, Maryland Charles County is a county in Southern Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 166,617. The county seat is La Plata. The county was named for Charles Calvert (1637–1715), third Baron Baltimore. Charles County is part of the Wash ...

. Known as St. Ignatius Church and Cemetery, the manor house complex is the oldest continuously occupied

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

residence in the world. The mission settlement of Chapel Point was established in 1641 by Father Andrew White, S.J., an English Jesuit missionary. Father White ministered to the

Potapoco The Potapoco were a tribe of Native Americans living in southern Maryland at the time of English colonization in the 17th century. The Potapoca were among the Atlantic coastal tribes speaking Algonquian languages, and they inhabited the area alo ...

Native Americans, some of whom he converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. Established in 1662, this is the oldest continuously active

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

parish in the American

Thirteen Colonies The Thirteen Colonies, also known as the Thirteen British Colonies, the Thirteen American Colonies, or later as the United Colonies, were a group of Kingdom of Great Britain, British Colony, colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America. Fo ...

. With the consecration in 1794 of Bishop

John Carroll John Carroll may refer to: People Academia and science *Sir John Carroll (astronomer) (1899–1974), British astronomer *John Alexander Carroll (died 2000), American history professor *John Bissell Carroll (1916–2003), American cognitive sci ...

, St. Thomas became the first Roman Catholic

see See or SEE may refer to: * Sight - seeing Arts, entertainment, and media * Music: ** ''See'' (album), studio album by rock band The Rascals *** "See", song by The Rascals, on the album ''See'' ** "See" (Tycho song), song by Tycho * Television * ...

in the United States.

Description

The house is a two-story, seven-bay, brick structure of

Georgian architecture Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I, George II, Georg ...

, of

Flemish bond Brickwork is masonry produced by a bricklayer, using bricks and Mortar (masonry), mortar. Typically, rows of bricks called ''Course (architecture), courses'' are laid on top of one another to build up a structure such as a brick wall. Bricks ...

construction. The mansion is the oldest surviving example of the

Georgian style Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarchs of the House of Hano ...

in Maryland. The manor house was built in 1741 as the headquarters of the Maryland

Mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

of the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

, replacing an earlier structure. It served as the Superior's and later the Provincial's official residence. This house was also the nucleus of other missions in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

and the mid-Atlantic region. Connected to the manor house stands a two-story brick wing that incorporates a former chapel built in 1798, now called St. Ignatius Church. Outbuildings are also significant, including a small, mid-19th century wood-frame

slaves Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

' quarter, "one of remarkably few such buildings to survive in this area." In addition, the former corn crib is the "largest structure of its type recorded in Charles County, and one that exhibits many construction features not represented elsewhere." Chapel Point2

A cemetery lies to the west of the manor house and church. Notable parishioners are buried there, including

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

agent

Olivia Floyd Anne Olivia Floyd (July 2, 1826 – December 8, 1905) was a Confederate spy during the American Civil War, noted as a blockade runner. Early life and education Anne Olivia Floyd, known as Olivia, was the daughter of David I. and Sarah (Semmes) Fl ...

La Plata La Plata () is the capital city of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. According to the , it has a population of 654,324 and its metropolitan area, the Greater La Plata, has 787,294 inhabitants. It is located 9 kilometers (6 miles) inland from th ...

benefactor

Adrian Posey Adrian Posey (October 14, 1857 – July 2, 1922) was an American politician, attorney, businessman and newspaper publisher from Charles County, Maryland. Early life Born at Mount Pleasant, the Posey family farm near Allens Fresh, Adrian Posey was ...

, judge Walter M. Digges, and U.S. Congressmen, Sydney Emanuel Mudd and

Sydney Emanuel Mudd II Sydney Emanuel Mudd II (June 20, 1885 – October 11, 1924) was an American attorney and politician from Maryland's 5th congressional district, elected to several terms as a US Representative in Congress, dying in office. He was a Republican ...

. St. Thomas Manor was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1988. Due to its history and scenic waterfront setting, the manor grounds, church and cemetery attract visitors from distant places. They make up a favorite rest-stop for many bicycle tour groups.

Additional significance

In 1794 it was at St. Thomas Manor that

was invested in his robes as the first Catholic bishop of the United States of America, after the nation gained independence in the Revolutionary War. (He later traveled to London for official

consecration Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

as a bishop by the

Vicar Apostolic A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

.) This investiture established St. Thomas as the first Roman Catholic

in the United States. The St. Thomas complex was also the site of the revival of the Jesuit order in the United States in 1805, after it had been suppressed by the Catholic Church in 1773. Three American priests took their vows at St. Ignatius Church. Some of the slaves owned by the Jesuit Maryland Province resided at St. Thomas Manor. They were among the 272 sold in 1838. In a letter,

William McSherry William McSherry (July 19, 1799December 18, 1839) was an American Catholic priest and Jesuit who became the president of Georgetown College and a Jesuit provincial superior. The son of Irish immigrants, McSherry was educated at Georgetown C ...

, S.J. estimated that the sale of the enslaved persons would amount to approximately $16,000 . The Maryland Province Jesuits opposed the

slave trade Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

, but not slavery in practice.

Catholic Church and Indian records

During the years of

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

and after the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, when most southern governments classified people as only black or white in a binary system related to the racial caste of slavery, St. Ignatius was among the Catholic parishes that continued to record their Native congregational members as Indian, regardless of whether they were of

mixed race Mixed race people are people of more than one race or ethnicity. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mixed race people in a variety of contexts, including ''multiethnic'', ''polyethnic'', occasionally ''bi-ethn ...

. In

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

and United States records, by contrast, the tribal identities of some Native Americans were lost when they were classified by outsiders as

free people of color In the context of the history of slavery in the Americas, free people of color (French: ''gens de couleur libres''; Spanish: ''gente de color libre'') were primarily people of mixed African, European, and Native American descent who were not ...

, "colored," or "white," regardless of how they identified ethnically. Research in Catholic records has helped some tribes document their continuous cultural history and identification as Native American, and to gain state and federal recognition as tribes since the late 20th century.Merrell, James H. "Cultural Continuity Among the Piscataway Indians of Colonial Maryland." ''William & Mary Quarterly'', 3rd series, 36 (1979): 548-70

Gallery

Image:St Thomas Manor Historic Marker Sept 09.JPG, St. Thomas Manor, Historic Marker, September 2009 Image:StIgnatius 20110626.jpg, St. Thomas Manor, St. Ignatius Church, June 26, 2011. Image:StIgnatiusSign 20110626.jpg, Explanatory sign at St. Thomas Manor, St. Ignatius Church, June 26, 2011.

References

External links