St. Michaels in Talbot County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Mitchell House
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"They rent about an acre of ground on which they raise vegetables enough for the family; they raise their own meat."
Lewis Douglass describing the Mitchell's to his father, Frederick, 9 June 1865
Once the home of Eliza Bailey Mitchell, abolitionist Frederick Douglass' closest sibling, Mitchell House's oldest portion (left) contained one room and a loft built between 1815 and 1860, while the portion on the right is a reconstruction that completes the original parlor-and-hall style. Eliza and her husband Peter, a free Black man, lived in the house with their family for many yearspossibly as early as the 1830son the Perry Cabin Farm owned by the Hambleton family, who previously enslaved Peter. In 1836, Peter "purchased" his wife and two children from Thomas Auld for $100.
By the time Peter acquired the house from the Hambletons in 1871, it had been moved to Lee Street in St. Michaels, Maryland. In 1972, James E. Thomas, the great-grandson of Peter and Eliza Mitchell and St. Michaels' first Black town commissioner, saved the house from demolition. CBMM purchased Mitchell House in 1981 and restored it to interpret the lives of enslaved and free Black laborers.
[Caption:]
Mitchell House and its yard may have looked like this in
this page online
Drawing by Eric Applegarth, 2010. Collection of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.
Erected by Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Anthropology & Archaeology • Government & Politics • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical date for this entry is June 9, 1865.
Location. 38° 47.308′ N, 76° 13.293′ W. Marker is in St. Michaels, Maryland, in Talbot County. It can be reached from the intersection of North Talbot Street and Dodson Avenue, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 213 N Talbot St, Saint Michaels MD 21663, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is on the Eastern Shore. It is also in the American Mid-Atlantic, on the Delmarva Peninsula, in the Tidewater, and in the Chesapeake Bay Region. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies and also the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Log House (a few steps from this marker); Heirloom Vegetable & Herb Garden (within shouting distance of this marker); Hooper Straight Light's Twin (within shouting distance of this marker); Last Bell Foundry (within
Credits. This page was last revised on October 5, 2025. It was originally submitted on October 5, 2025, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 56 times since then and 18 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 5, 2025, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
