Landon House

The Landon House was originally constructed in 1754 on the banks of the Rappahannock River in Virginia as a 12,000 square-foot silk mill. The structure was dismantled in 1840 and transported by barge and overland to Georgetown, Washington D.C. It was then placed on a barge and transported up the C&O Canal to Point of Rocks, Maryland from where it was hauled by oxcart to its present location in 3401 Urbana Pike, Frederick, Maryland. It was reconstructed in 1846 and served as a girl's school (The Shirley Female Academy) until 1854, after which it was transformed into the Landon Military Academy & Institute run by Robert C. Jones until 1860. The building was then abandoned prior to the Civil War.

Early in September 1862, while infantry of Gen. Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia rested near Frederick, Maryland, Lee’s cavalry chief Gen. James Ewell Brown "J.E.B." Stuart occupied Urbana, Maryland to report on any Federal advance from Washington. Having received a warm welcome from the community, and with knowledge that his troops had been fighting hard for months, Stuart felt the need for a break from the war and on September 8, 1862, hosted a party at the academy for Confederate cavalrymen and local ladies. The 18th Mississippi Cavalry’s regimental band provided the music, the house was decorated with Stuart's regiment flags and the ballroom was adorned with roses clipped from local gardens. During the ball, news arrived that Union soldiers were close by and headed for Urbana, and the cavalrymen mounted their horses and rode off in the night. Upon learning that the 1st North Carolina Infantry had repulsed the Northern forces, they quickly returned and the ball resumed. This dance has come to be known as the renowned "Sabers and Roses Ball."

The building was then converted to a field hospital where wounded and dying soldiers retreating to Virginia received care. It was likely at this time that so called "lightning sketches" of CSA President Jefferson Davis and General Stuart were drawn in charcoal by Rebel troops on a wall over one of the house mantles. Shortly thereafter, Federal troops also used the academy as a hospital and seeing the drawings by the Confederate troops, the Union soldiers added a twice-as-large image of President Abe Lincoln and signed and dated it Sept. 16, 1862. These drawings can still be seen on the walls of the house today.

Following the Civil War, the abandoned military academy was purchased by Sam Hinks, the "know Nothing" mayor of Baltimore (1854-1856. At his death, it was occupied by his descendants until purchased by Lt. Col. Luke Tiernan Brien, a Confederate veteran and an officer in Gen. Stuart's division, who lived there with his wife until 1912.

The property was acquired in 1946 by Mr. & Mrs. Ivan Stancioff. Ivan was born in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1897, was educated in France and had political appointments to diplomatic posts in Sofia, in Rome, and Romania in 1942 as Consul General. He arrived in America with his wife Marion and their children in 1946. They purchased the home in April 1947 and it remained in the Stancioff family until July 1997. The house was added to the National Historic Register in 1974.

The building was purchased by Kevin Dolan and used as an event venue and hosted Civil War re-enactments.

In 2013, the house was purchased at auction by PCR Ventures, and is undergoing complete restoration, following the Secretary of Interiors guidelines for historical properties. Upon completion, The Landon House will be used as an upscale event venue and restaurant.