In the mid 1800s, John Garrett was named the president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad where
he amassed a fortune. With his new found wealth, he set out to build his dream house. He purchased
a stately Italianate residence in Baltimore and quickly expanded it with a series of renovations,
until the original house was unrecognizable behind a neo-classical façade. His son, T. Harrison,
took his place at the railroad, inherited the mansion, and doubled its size once again,
adding a massive wing for entertaining and live-in staff. By the time the house would
be called “finished” it boasted 48 rooms and was surrounded by perfectly curated gardens.
The 26 acre estate boasted several outbuildings with stables and rolling pastures, but for as
beautiful as the setting was, it was only a tease of the grandeur you would find inside.
As we begin exploring the home, we will see a mix of historic and modern photos to give
us the best idea of what the home looked like in its prime. Entering the mansion, we will
pass through the portico, looking up to see an abundance of expertly crafted artisan details.
Next we will come to the front door,
locked away behind an intricate wrought iron gate of hand-made, twisting leaves and vines.
This leads us to the Main Hall, broken up by pilasters resting on a tile mosaic floor. In place
of transom windows above the doorways, we will notice fretwork concealed by curving millwork.
To the lefthand side, below an arched opening, we will find the stair hall.
We can go up to the second floor stair landing to take a closer look at the details of this space in
color to truly appreciate the craftsmanship of the newel posts, guarded by hippogriffs.
The walls are clad in wood paneling below a coffered ceiling, and with windows on two sides,
natural light enriches the warm tones of the old growth paneling.
Coming back downstairs, we will make our way from the stair hall,
back towards the entrance hall to continue our tour.
First, we will find the dining room, staged with antique furnishings and heavy drapes above parquet
floors. This connects to the butler’s pantry with floating cabinets against a subway tiled wall.
While we are here, we might as well peek into the kitchen where staff would have prepared
every meal for the family. It was equipped with state of the art appliances and only the finest
copper pots and pans to ensure the family would only eat the highest quality courses.
As for the styling of the kitchen, the walls boasted elaborate tile wainscotting
even though it is unlikely that the family would have ever stepped foot in the kitchen.
Let’s make our way back across the entrance hall to find the drawing room,
also known as the double parlor boasting twin fireplaces. Guests would have been dazzled by
the flickering light refracting from the crystal chandeliers across the polished parquet floors.
To one side of the drawing room, we will find the reception room with overstuffed furniture
nestled up to deep window encasement below a coffered plaster ceiling.
Coming through the opening on the far side of the drawing room we will find ourselves
in the reading room with 2 alcoves. This room is finished out with floor to ceiling built in
bookshelves set above a more intricately parqueted floor than what we have seen throughout thus far.
This will connect us to the largest room on the first floor, the library. All together,
the family collected over 30,000 books, some of which dated back to the 1600’s. Though,
not all of their books fit in the library and the reading room, we will see several
more reading nooks as we continue to explore this booklover’s paradise. With all the fine
details and ornate relief work found within the wood paneling, let’s not forget to look down.
Nestled in the corner, the parquet floor splits apart at its seams to reveal a trap door. Let’s
make our way down the service stairs to see all of the things hidden out of site from guests.
Down here we will find the elevator machine room as well as the innerworkings of the
servant’s call box. Getting lost in the labyrinth of the brick foundation,
we will pass by the broiler room and find the elevator to take us back upstairs.
The second floor hall continues with built in book shelves for as far as the eye can
see leading towards 2 story storage room and office. Taking the stairs to its second level,
we find stacks where even more books are stored above a reinforced floor.
There are still several more grand, public rooms to see,
but while we are up here, let’s take a moment to see the bedrooms.
The aptly named “Victorian Room” was decorated in deep
colors with a plaster frieze boasting a floral motif above a gilded mirror.
The “Garden Room” was furnished with heavy, wooden furniture decorated with
intricate stenciling contrasted with delicate porcelain figures displayed on an open shelf.
And the bathroom was clad in 23 carat gold about the tub surround with gold
leafing to conceal the water pipes. Facing the luxurious tub,
a tile mosaic fireplace warmed the room with a framed, figurative mosaic in its upper mantel.
Even the toilet, dubbed the golden throne, was clad in 23 carat gold.
Let’s hop over to the other wing of the house to begin exploring some
of the more fascinating spaces for entertaining.
Here we will find the “Far East Room” named for it’s eclectic collection of Asian antiques,
part of the son’s expansion to the house.
At the end of this room, we will continue up the staircase to the second floor.
This brings us to the entrance to the in-home theater decorated with bold colors and patterns
designed by famous artist Leon Bakst. The theater lobby is decorated with dark furnishings,
boldly contrasting the colorful textiles and stenciling found throughout the room.
When the musicians or actors were ready to perform, you would make your
way into the theater to experience an up-close and personal live play.
The Garrett family enjoyed their time in the home, passing it down through the generations
until 1952 when it, along with much of its furnishings and book collections, were donated
to John Hopkins University. Today, it is open to the public as the Evergreen Museum and Library,
standing mostly intact in it’s original form as a testament to the grandeur of America’s Gilded Age.
Did you have a favorite room? Let me know down below in the comments section. And while you’re
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