Hampton National Historic Site — Attraction in Towson

Late August on a week day afternoon we decided to visit here for something fun and informative to do with two teen aged girls. Upon entering the driveway the visitors center is the first building to the right with an ample parking lot. There are restrooms there, a staff of rangers, and other displays that we didn't investigate for sake of the time. The tours run on the hour here, I'm not sure the website explains that and we just happened to arrive 15 minutes before the last tour at 3pm. The entrance to the mansion is not clearly directed.... Continue past the visitor building up the hill to the next smaller parking lot. Park there if there's room and head to the walking path just beyond the parking lot to the right. The path leads to the mansion and the tour entrance is in the rear up a wooden ramp to a door with a knocker on it. There was no one there to greet us. We waited alone outside the door a little confused, knocked a couple of times with no answer, and almost left when a man came and apologized for not answering the door because he wanted to "be sure no one else was coming". The tour itself was about 45 mins. The guide was informative but seemed preoccupied with the delivery of his clever puns throughout his spiel and left little room for questions or comments from us. The mansion is beautiful and a disengaged tour guide must not put off your visit. There is much to see and learn about the history of life in Maryland. The rest of the property is open to be explored without a guide. You will enjoy a garden area, a stable, a cemetery, and the servants housing, which involves a bit of walking but the teens enjoyed picture taking throughout. The property closes at 5pm. Just before closing I left the group to drive down the hill to the visitors center and use the facilities, then return to the upper mansion parking lot to pick the others up. There was one other car in the lot when I pulled into a spot and walked to find the group at the cemetery. From there it was a bout a 5 minute walk back to the car. We arrived to find a ranger writing me a ticket! It was 4:55pm and the lot was empty, yet I was receiving a ticket because I did not park properly in the lines of the parking spot which is a "common problem there". I did remind the ranger of what time it was and explained that I'd just pulled in there that way 10 minutes prior, and further explained that this was our first visit to the mansion. Considering these facts she let me off with a warning. In conclusion I leave you my own warning, be sure to perfect your parking skills before visiting the mansion. The thought of the overall mansion experience for me is bittersweet. I thought the rangers were there for our safety, and not such menial issues of a how an SUV is parked in any empty parking lot. Better...

There certainly seems to be some great changes in how the NPS is presenting Hampton. It was a great relief to be able to visit the park on Saturday and hear a completely different story than I'd ever heard about Hampton before. Far more focused on acknowledging the enslaved individuals and demonizing the Ridgely's as enslavers. I've been visiting and taking tours of this site for 30 years and I was just completely blown away. I actually learned NEW things. I took the mansion tour with Ranger Jimmy and the Farming, Families, and Freedom tour with Ranger Dustin expecting to hear all the usual happy stories about the Ridgely's and the very intentional avoidance of anything negative about them or their conduct as enslavers. Always very white washed and nauseatingly enchanting for it being the second largest slave plantation in Maryland. Much to my suprise, rather, it was the exact opposite. Everyone attending the tour was engaged and at times transfixed by the information. At the end of the Lower Farm tour we all gathered at the picnic tables and despite the fact that that tour was only supposed to last a half hour, Dustin sat with the entire group for over 2 hours after the tour discussing the Ridgely's, the enslaved people, opinions, books, hopes and ideas for the park, and answering and pondering questions. It was the tour it should have always been. We were unable to make it to the Gardens, Grounds, and Architecture tour with Ranger Jimmy but I'm looking forward to coming back very soon to see what other new things I can learn from that tour. I think it's great that they've broken the tours down in such a way that really maximizes the amount of information you receive about this site. I'm told the signage and brochures will even be updated soon. This really seems to be a turning point on the NPS behalf and it's one you...

I took a tour of the mansion on October 8th, 2023. My impression of the tour was identical to that of the previous reviewer, who gave the name of Mr.Warhukker. The guide emphasized early in the tour that the manor house wasn't actually in the Georgian style, without explaining what the Georgian style is or what style the building belongs to. He repeated several times that the Ridgelys didn't distinguish themselves in any way except for being a wealthy slaveholding family. However, I later read in Wikipedia that "Charles Carnan Ridgely frequently entertained prominent guests in the Mansion's ...Great Hall, such as Charles Carroll Carrollton, who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and the Revolutionary War general, the Marquis de Lafayette". Eliza Ridgely (1806 - 67), the subject of Thomas Sully's famous portrait Lady with a Harp, "was a noted horticulturist and had successively larger and more elaborate gardens cultivated on the grounds". These are just two examples. Neither did the guide provide answers to the questions: What cultural and aesthetic value does the interior of that Manor have - its furniture, carpets, curtains, chandeliers, vases, etc.,? Who made them? Why were they chosen? What is special about them? This is what tour guides are expected to tell visitors about to make their tours...