Imagine stepping back two centuries. Here stands the Pierce-Klingle Mansion. It is a testament to time and nature. Today we explore its rich past.
The Pierce-Klingle Mansion is also known as Linnaean Hill. Joshua Pierce built it in 1823. He named it after Carl Linnaeus. Linnaeus was a famous Swedish botanist. The house is in Rock Creek Park. It has been a historic site since 1964. In 1973, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Joshua Pierce was a horticulturist. He introduced box gardens to Washington. He supplied plants to the White House and Capitol. Senators Daniel Webster, John C. Calhoun, and Henry Clay visited here. They were notable Washington figures.
Pierce died without children. His nephew, Joshua Pierce Klingle, inherited the estate. He lived here until 1890. The government bought the house for Rock Creek Park. The Public Works Administration restored it in 1937. It was a private residence until 1952. Then the Junior Nature Center used it until 1959. The Junior League of Washington had its offices here. In 1972, the National Park Service took over.
The Pierce-Klingle Mansion is a three-story house. It has ten rooms. It is built in the Pennsylvania Dutch farmhouse style. The exterior is blue and grey granite. The walls are thick. They measure 24 inches. An addition was built on the west side in 1843.
Inside, the poplar paneling is original. So is most of the mantelpiece. A large fireplace was found during the 1937 renovation. It measures six feet long and four feet high. A beehive oven sits beside it.
Outside, a barn and carriage house stand to the east. They are built into the hillside. A utility house is behind the main house. It is made of granite. The potting shed matches the utility house’s design.
Joshua Pierce named the property Linnaean Hill. This honored Carl Linnaeus. Peirce grew ornamental trees and flowers. He supplied them to public parks. This included the White House grounds. He designed the landscape. It became a picturesque country garden.
Enslaved laborers worked here until about 1860. After emancipation, Peirce’s nephew helped. Two African American farmhands also worked here. William H. Becket was the nursery foreman. He resumed his duties after being enslaved.
The Rock Creek Park Nature Center operated in the mansion in the 1950s. Neighbors complained about traffic. A new nature center opened in 1960. From 1959 to 1972, the Junior League of Washington leased the mansion.
Today, the Pierce-Klingle Mansion serves as Rock Creek Park’s headquarters. About 32 acres of the original estate remain. It is one of the most intact nineteenth-century estates here.
As you leave, remember the history held within these walls. The Pierce-Klingle Mansion stands as a reminder of a bygone era. It connects us to the past.