Maryland Home and Garden Pilgrimage
Event Details
*Tickets are required to attend*
Explore historic houses and properties throughout southern Anne Arundel County, on a self-guided journey organized by the Maryland House & Garden Pilgrimage. This year’s tour starts at SERC’s 1735 Woodlawn History Center, and includes some rarely visitable properties open specifically for this tour! Tickets are required to participate and enter the historic properties. Woodlawn will be open only to tour participants with tickets on May 10.
Tourgoers may begin the tour at the Woodlawn History Center, 647 Contees Wharf Road, Edgewater 21037
Learn about other stops on the tour and purchase tickets
Find out when Woodlawn is open to the general public
About Woodlawn:
Woodlawn House was built in 1735 for William Sellman. General Jonathan Sellman Jr. (1753–1810), who grew up in Woodlawn House, served in the Continental Army during the American Revolution and endured the hardship at Valley Forge. General George Washington later presented Sellman with a sword and praise for “courage and gallant conduct.” The center part of the house dates to 1735. The three-story wing on the left was added in 1841,replacing one half of the building. The wing on the right was added in 1979 and replaced wooden additions built in the1800s. The house is known as a “telescope house” because with its smaller wings the structure resembles an outstretched telescope. In 2020, the Smithsonian rehabilitated Woodlawn House and transformed it into the Woodlawn History Center. The center offers in-depth history on its buildings and the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Woodlawn House is the oldest building in the Smithsonian collection that remains in its original location.
