Building in the Fourth Century: Annapolis Historic District Design Manual

Annapolis Historic Preservation Commission

From introduction: "The architectural and historic significance of Annapolis has been recognized both locally and nationally. Based upon its “exceptional value or quality in illustrating or interpreting the heritage of the United States,” the Colonial Annapolis Historic District was designated one of forty-three National Historic Landmark Districts in 1965 by the U.S. Department of the Interior’s National Park Service. In recognition of the superior preservation of its significant eighteenth, nineteenth and early twentieth century structures, an enlarged historic district was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. Annapolis is a remarkable urban environment. Laid out 300 years ago on a neck of land where the Severn River joins the Chesapeake Bay, the city evokes a sense of history and a sense of place, expressed in the character of its streets, the fit of its land to the water, and its pleasing human scale. Governor Francis Nicholson’s 1695 town plan for Annapolis is the oldest surviving Baroque plan in the United States. Annapolis presents a unique record of the pre-industrial colonial city in our country, and its collection of 18th, 19th and 20th century architecture is important to the entire nation. Annapolis was home to Maryland’s four signers of the Declaration of Independence; the Continental Congress met here during 1783 and 1784; and in 1845 the U.S. Congress chose Annapolis as the location for the U.S. Naval Academy." Project funding was provided in part by a 2006 Historic Preservation Fund grant to the City of Annapolis (project number MD-06-011) administered by the Maryland State Historic Preservation Office and the State, Tribal, and Local Plans and Grants Division, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Annapolis, Maryland is a Certified Local Government.

Building in the Fourth Century: Annapolis Historic District Design Manual

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