Calvert Home: Historic Riversdale Mansion

Riversdale Mansion
A Maryland treasure for 200 years

The Calvert mansion, known as Riversdale, is located in the town that adopted its name. It was commissioned in 1801 by a Belgian aristocrat, Henri Stier. It is regarded as a fine example of European chateau elegance cum American plantation simplicity.

Henri's daughter, Rosalie, married George Calvert, a descendant of the founding family of Maryland. They took up residence at Riversdale mansion. In 1817, Maryland's first agricultural society was formed in Prince George's County, and attracted their son, Charles Benedict Calvert.

In 1856, Charles Calvert conducted all sorts of agricultural Charles Benedict Calvert experiments on his plantation; led county, state, and national agricultural societies; and lobbied hard for the creation of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He donated the Ross Borough Farm, part of the great Riversdale estate. This land became the Maryland Agricultural College, the forerunner of the University of Maryland.

He was also a strong supporter of Samuel Morse who invented the telegraph. On April 9, 1844, Morse successfully tested his device by transmitting a message from the nation's capital to Riversdale. This test came 45 days before the more celebrated event when Morse sent the message "What hath God wrought!" from Washington to Baltimore.

"Mistress of Riversdale ," the book based on a collection of letters written by Rosalie Stier Calvert, details slave life at the mansion. She maintained as many as 60 slaves at Riversdale, sometimes working them at her husband's plantation in Upper Marlboro. Between them, the couple owned almost 100 slaves.

By 1860, 60 percent of Prince Georges county's residents were black, and 90 percent of them were slaves. Despite being a majority of the population for many years, the heritage of those early black residents is barely visible.

And what of the blacks in the county during the war? When slavery was abolished in the District of Columbia in April 1862, a good many fled there to freedom. The old way of life for the slaveholders came to an end; freedom at last came to the slaves. In two hundred years of settlement, Prince George's County had become the richest, most productive plantation county in Maryland.

During the Civil War, the Rossborough Inn, donated in 1856 to the Maryland Agricultural College by Charles Calvert, was turned over to Confederate General Bradley Tyler Johnson for use as a headquarters.

Remembering Our Rich History

Although it was a grand residence for 150 years, in 1949 Riversdale was deteriorating. It was purchased by the Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission in 1981. After repairs on the structure, the house was opened for tours and public rentals. Complete restoration began in 1988 and was completed in 1993.

The driving force behind the restoration of Riversdale was the 250-member Riversdale Historical Society which was founded in 1967 by president Ann Ferguson. Mrs. Ferguson is now the mayor of the town of Riverdale Park.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York had one of only five sets of the fine quality, hand-blocked French wallpaper designed by Charles Vernet that was originally used in Riversdale. Printed in 1814 by the firm of Jacquemart & Be'nard, the paper was purchased for the restoration effort.

A McDonald's sits directly across Route 1 from the former entrance to the mansion. Homes and traffic fill areas that once were tobacco fields. The Calvert family is buried in a tiny cemetery north of East-West Highway.

There are many sources for information on Riversdale including several articles from the Washington Post and Prince Georges County Journal newspapers, and documents in the Maryland State Archives. I have included relevant articles in "In the News." The 1991 compilation of Rosalie Stier's letters by Margaret Law Callcott, "Mistress of Riversdale: The Plantation Letters of Rosalie Stier Calvert 1795-1821" is available from Johns Hopkins University Press.

Today, Riversdale is restored to 1800s condition. The mansion is located at 4811 Riverdale Road, Riverdale, Maryland. Tours are available to the public for a nominal admission fee. Call 301-864-0420 for information.