Port Tobacco in Charles County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
The Tension of Liberty
National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, January 22, 2019
1. The Tension of Liberty Marker
A working farm provided a refuge for religion at the cost of freedom for enslaved laborers.
The history of Saint Ignatius Church reaches back to the English colony of Maryland. Lord Baltimore, the colony's founder, recruited Jesuit priests to serve the first Catholic settlers and support religious toleration in the colony. Father Andrew White selected this site close to local Native American communities.
These 4,000 acres became known as Saint Thomas Manor in 1649. Farm revenues supported the Jesuit's works throughout the colonies, and a church building here allowed Catholics to worship on private land undisturbed.
(Image of the church.)
An aerial view from 1944 shows the other side of the manor from where you stand.
(Image of document.)
Plantation Records
By 1700, Saint Thomas Manor, like many farms in the colony, relied on enslaved Africans as farm workers. In 1830, 272 slaves were sold across Jesuit plantation in Maryland, including families here at Saint Thomas Manor.
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This project has been financed in part with state funds from the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority, an instrumentality of the State of Maryland. However, the contents and opinions do not necessarily reflect views or policies of the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority.
Erected 2018 by St. Ingatius Church, Maryland Byways, Maryland Heritage Areas Authority.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Agriculture • Colonial Era • Religion & Religious Structures. A significant historical year for this entry is 1649.
Location. 38° 27.941′ N, 77° 1.439′ W. Marker is in Port Tobacco, Maryland, in Charles County. It is on Chapel Point Road half a mile west of Aries Road, on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 8855 Chapel Point Rd, Port Tobacco MD 20677, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Washington Metropolitan Area and in Southern Maryland. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, in the Mid-Atlantic,
National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, January 22, 2019
2. The Tension of Liberty Marker
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: St. Ignatius Church - St. Thomas Manor (here, next to this marker); St. Ignatius Catholic Church (a few steps from this marker); Saint Ignatius' Church (within shouting distance of this marker); Rise from the Ashes (within shouting distance of this marker); Saint Thomas Manor (within shouting distance of this marker); Ways to Explore Southern Maryland’s Scenic and Historic Routes (within shouting distance of this marker); Chapel Point Park (approx. 0.2 miles away); Mulberry Grove (approx. 1.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Port Tobacco.
Also see . . .
1. St. Ignatius Church History. Church website entry (Submitted on January 25, 2019.)
2. St. Thomas Manor. Maryland's National Register
National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, January 22, 2019
3. The Tension of Liberty Marker
3. Religious Freedom Byway. Visit Maryland website entry (Submitted on January 25, 2019.)
Photographed by Evan Dwyer, October 31, 2026
4. Servant's Quarters
On the opposite side of the complex from the marker is a servant's quarters - dating to about 1840, this is a slave's quarters (in the antebellum south, slaves were often referred to as "servants" as a form of societal massaging of the institution's brutality) that was used by bonafide servants - freed slaves paid to continue their pre-war work - after Maryland abolished slavery in 1864. This building is a standing testament to the "Tension of Liberty" itself.
Photographed by Evan Dwyer, October 31, 2026
5. Servant's Quarters Tablet
There is a memorial tablet on the ca. 1840 Servant's Quarters, which reads "In grateful memory of our fellow servants and workers at St. Thomas Manor" but does not contain the name of the organization or the "fellow servants" who erected the tablet.
Credits. This page was last revised on November 11, 2026. It was originally submitted on January 25, 2019. This page has been viewed 415 times since then and 37 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 25, 2019. 4, 5. submitted on November 11, 2026, by Evan Dwyer of Richmond, Virginia. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
