The Cloisters, also known as Cloisters Castle, is a historic home in Lutherville,

Baltimore County Baltimore County ( , locally: or ) is the third-most populous county in the U.S. state of Maryland and is part of the Baltimore metropolitan area. Baltimore County (which partially surrounds, though does not include, the independent City of ...

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 ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The building was completed in 1932, after three years of construction. The house is 4 story house, irregular in elevation and plan with much architectural ornament. It is built of large, random-sized blocks of a native gray and gold colored rock known as Butler stone, with details principally of

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

, wood from the site, plaster, and

wrought iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag Inclusion (mineral), inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a ...

. The main façade is dominated by two asymmetrically placed, projecting sections topped by massive half-timbered gables which were originally part of a

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

house in Domrémy,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It also has a massive stone octagonal stair tower, which contains a stone and wrought-iron

spiral staircase Stairs are a structure designed to bridge a large vertical distance between lower and higher levels by dividing it into smaller vertical distances. This is achieved as a diagonal series of horizontal platforms called steps which enable passage ...

and is crowned by a crenellated parapet and a small, round, stone-roofed structure from which one can exit onto the roof of the main tower. The house's roof is constructed of overlapping

flagstone Flagstone (flag) is a generic flat stone, sometimes cut in regular rectangular or square shape and usually used for paving slabs or walkways, patios, flooring, fences and roofing. It may be used for memorials, headstones, facades and other con ...

s secured by iron pins, the only roof of this kind in America. The property is owned by

Baltimore City Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...

and operated by the Baltimore Office of Promotion and Arts, although it is located in Baltimore County. The city ran a children's museum in the building until 1996, when it moved to the

Inner Harbor The Inner Harbor is a historic seaport, tourist attraction, and landmark of the city of Baltimore, Maryland. It was described by the Urban Land Institute in 2009 as "the model for post-industrial waterfront redevelopment around the world". The ...

area and was renamed " Port Discovery". The Cloisters is currently operated as a rental facility, hosting over 250 weddings, parties, bar/bat mitzvahs, and gatherings per year. The Cloisters 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 1979.

In popular culture

On December 31, 1997, about 100 guests attended the wedding of

Jada Pinkett Smith Jada Koren Pinkett Smith (; née Pinkett; born September 18, 1971) is an American actress and talk show host. She is co-host of the Facebook Watch talk show '' Red Table Talk'', for which she has received a Daytime Emmy Award. ''Time'' named ...

and

Will Smith Willard Carroll Smith II (born September 25, 1968), also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor and rapper. He began his Will Smith filmography, acting career starring as Will Smith (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air), a ...

at The Cloisters.

References

External links

*
The Cloisters official website
(Managed by Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts, 10 E. Baltimore Street, 10th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202)
The Cloisters (Cloisters Castle)
(Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts, 10 E. Baltimore Street, 10th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202)
Cloisters Castle - Event Venue, Historical Place , Facebook
(Listing on www.dupontcastle.com Directory of U.S. Castles)
''Maryland (Scenic) Byways'' (Brochure)
(References to The Cloisters, pp. 72, 74) Houses in Baltimore County, Maryland Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Maryland Houses completed in 1930 Gothic Revival architecture in Maryland Lutherville, Maryland National Register of Historic Places in Baltimore County, Maryland 1930 establishments in Maryland {{BaltimoreCountyMD-NRHP-stub