Mansion Architecture

 

The mansion serves as the centerpiece of the Hampton estate, which was the intent of Captain Charles Ridgely when he commissioned the building of his country summer home following the end of the Revolutionary War. The mansion was constructed through the labor of many free craftsmen, indentured servants, and enslaved African-Americans between 1783-1790. The grand design was the vision of Capt. Ridgely, who had seen traditional European styles (Georgian, Baroque, and Palladian) on his several trips to England in the 1750s and 1760. While the mansion did not have a professional architect in todays sense of the word, master carpenter and builder Jehu Howell, described in his obituary as a "very ingenious architect," assisted Capt. Ridgely in fusing these designs with American features to create a distinctive architectural statement. Construction moved forward under Howell's supervision, but he passed away in 1787 before the mansion was completed. At 24,000 square feet and with over 31 rooms, the mansion may have been the largest private residence in the United States upon its completion, and today serves as one of the finest remaining original examples of 18th century Georgian-style architecture.

 

A key feature of the mansion is its five-part symmetrical design with a main block flanked by hyphens and wings on each side. The overscale cupola on top is the centerpiece.

NPS Photo / Tim Ervin

Georgian Style

The mansion is one of the grandest surviving examples of Georgian architecture in the United States. Georgian architecture was popular for over 100 years during the reigns of George I - George IV between the years 1714-1830, and was inspired by classical revival buildings of the Italian Renaissance. Georgian architecture was part of a wave of Neoclassicism, a reaction to the dazzling, emotional, religious, and heavily contrasting architecture of the Baroque period.

Georgian architecture revisited the concepts of ancient Greek and Roman buildings, emphasizing clean lines, symmetry, and balance. Unlike Baroque architecture which was almost never present in the British colonies in eastern North America, Georgian architecture was the first real style to take root in the area dating to the 1730s.

Georgian architecture is linear and generally consists of symmetrical composition with classical proportions and ornament. In the Chesapeake region, the five-part plan was popular, composing of a central block, two rooms deep, two hyphens, and two wings. There are generally five windows across the main block( Hampton is unusual having seven bays), dormer windows on the uppermost floor, and flanking chimneys. The central block may also have a porch or enclosed porch (portico) with pediment over the entrance..

Following the American Revolution, Georgian style in the United States evolved into the even lighter, more delicate Federal style. Although this new style became very popular for the building of residences in post-Revolutionary Baltimore, Hampton mansion shows no influence of this taste.

 

Exterior features of the mansion's architecture.

NPS Photo / Tim Ervin

Key Features

The stucco on the mansion was unusual as the majority of Georgian-style homes in the colonies and later the United States had exterior walls of brick and wood. Hampton is constructed of stone, covered with stucco, which was originally scored to resemble large blocks of stone. This process was called “rustification.” The pink hue is due to the iron bearing sand used to create the stucco. This feature lends a nod to the Palladian style.

One of the most noticeable features of the mansion is the cupola, which sits atop the mansion. The cupola borrows from Baroque style and was a rare addition to a private residence in the 18th century, when cupolas were mainly used for government buildings. The cupola adds a decorate element and functional addition to the structure, which allowed the Ridgelys to view their estate for miles.

Decorative features on the exterior of the home add to its grandeur and unusual style. The decorative urns and the scrolls on the dormer windows are earlier Baroque features somewhat at odds with the aristocratic Georgian elegance of the clean lines of the main walls yet compliment the structure as a whole. The porticos on the center of both the north and south facades have triangular pediments featuring three-part "Palladian" windows which suggest further Palladian influence. The bold cornices at the rooflines with multiple Mouldings over projecting corbels are also typical of Georgian style.

The interior of the mansion features elements of Georgian style, including detailed cornice Moulding, often called 'Dentil Moulding' for its small tooth-like repeating blocks. The floorplan reflects the Georgian symmetry with rooms mirroring one another, and the main entrance areas looking identical on both sides of the home. The design of four parlors around a very large central hall with the stairs in a separate room to the side is quite unusual. The mansion's foundation, a full height basement was originally sectioned off into various cellars for storing wine, apples, root vegetables, carpets, and other items.

 

The mansion combines many different architectural elements to create a uniquely American style.

NPS Photo / Amanda Zimmerman

Uniquely American

Hampton is a blend of many styles, the result of a diverse vision which is truly “American.” Charles Ridgely did not follow the rules of any one particular style, nor did he turn completely away from European influence. Hampton is one family’s adaptation and interpretation of various styles that both reaches back to a British past while at the same time putting a distinctive twist on it. In this way, it reflects the way Americans have always forged new cultural identities by blending their roots with the creative independence.