Traveler: Allyson Vincent
Destination: Easton, Maryland

On a recent trip for a new client, Allyson Vincent and her team visited Easton, Maryland, a small town situated near Chesapeake Bay that dates back to the early 18th century.

 

When first starting a project in a new area, we love to go and explore nearby towns or houses to better understand the character of the region. Right now, I have the privilege of working on a project for an amazing client in the Eastern Bay area. To help get the creative juices flowing, we toured the quaint small town of Easton, Maryland along with a few historic estates along the Tred Avon River (but more on those later!). The idyllic streets of Easton (established in 1786) were lined with storefronts, great restaurants, noteworthy museums, and houses from various eras and styles. Below is a small sampling of the photos we took to help inspire our designs.

Our tour begins at the Tidewater Inn where we stayed while in Easton. It was a beautiful old hotel with a hidden courtyard and served as the gateway to the Eastern shore for decades, hosting many well-known guests such as the Kennedys, Elvis Presley, and Bing Crosby.

This historic house (below, left) is right in downtown Easton and is a quintessential example of the American Colonial home. I imagine that the white siding portion was built first and then as the family grew in both affluence and size, they added on the more refined brick portion. Take special notice of the large pair of chimneys connected by a brick wall.

I loved this view (below, right) because you could see the many additions and changes the various generations have made over the years. The building tells a story of how it grew as the families that lived there changed.

Located in the heart of Easton is Bartlett Pear Inn, built in 1790. Sadly, it recently closed but it is still standing tall and proud. I loved the age and wear of the white-washed brick as well as all the details on the two-story porch.

While most of Easton felt like a small American town, there was one block that had picturesque Tudor commercial buildings (below, left). Do you see the hidden door to take you to the upstairs spaces?

This (below, right) is another portion of the Tudor building, but it feels much more classic with the white painted brick, awnings, and wrought iron railings. It gives yet another small nod to Europe with the mansard roof.  Again, I love how the door to the second-floor spaces is recessed from the street.

I am not sure there is a small town out there that doesn’t have a few large, stately Queen Ann Homes, and Easton is no exception. This lovely lady had all the key features of the style with intricate woodwork, a turret, and a wraparound porch with turned posts.

This house (below, left) stood out to me because of how shallow the front yard setback was on the street. So often, people think we need a large front yard for plantings and grass to have a pleasant residential street. But here with only 10 feet from the curb to the porch, they have room for street trees, a sidewalk, and bushes. I can just imagine sitting on that porch in the evenings and greeting neighbors as they walk by.

The house next door (below, right) was built right up to the sidewalk and the steps all the way across the porch make it feel so welcoming. The windows go all the way to the floor and probably help connect what I assume is the front parlor to the outside. I was also drawn by the added interest the house had with a two-bay second floor over a three-bay first floor.  Most houses tend to have the same number of bays on the first and second floors (see the previous photo for example).

As our final stop in Easton, we have circled back to the Tidewater Inn and this little outbuilding was across the street. Its corbeled brick cornice and scalloped raking trim add to its charm almost as much as the idyllic setting. If you look closely, you will see that the raking trim gets narrower as it goes up to the point. That small detail helps keep the trim from seeming too heavy on the simple brick structure.

I hope you enjoyed a few of my favorite images from Easton, Maryland! In my next post, we’ll venture out to two historic properties on the Bay.