The grandest old house in Oxford, the Academy House (also known as the Bratt Mansion) was built in 1847 by General Tench Tilghman. He was a graduate of West Point, a general in the Maryland militia and the great grandson of Lt. Col. Tench Tilghman, one of Washington’s aides-de-camp in the Revolutionary War. Tilghman wanted to do something to help Oxford’s regrowth following the economic collapse at the end of the Revolutionary War. He decided to start The Maryland Military Academy here.
This beautiful home was built as the officers’ quarters and next to it, to the left, were the cadets’ facilities. All went well until September 13, 1855 when boys being boys, were smoking, despite a ban on such behavior and burned down the dormitory and classrooms. With the Civil War just around the corner, General Tilghman lost interest in rebuilding the Academy. He was a firm believer in the Southern way of life and was thought to have hoarded guns in the house in support of the Confederacy.
Most of the cadets who attended the Academy fought in the Civil War-- on one side or the other. Four members of the class of 1850 served with particular distinction. One was an aide-de-camp to Confederate President Jefferson Davis throughout the war. Another carried General Grant’s first surrender proposal to General Lee at Appomattox. A third was the builder and the first commander of the notorious Andersonville Prison, which ultimately led him to suicide.
The fourth was perhaps the most colorful. After graduating from the Academy, he went to France to join the Zouaves, the highly decorated French military units serving in North Africa that were known for their striking oriental uniforms. But when the Civil War broke out, he returned to the US and joined the rebel army where he devised a daring plan to take over one of the Union gunboats that patrolled the Chesapeake Bay. He knew that the gunboats were supplied by vessels that also carried civilian passengers. So, he dressed himself like a French lady, packed two large trunks with clothing and weapons, and headed out with his accomplices to the supply boat. By speaking French and flirting with the boat’s crew, he succeeded in getting his luggage aboard without inspection. Once the supply boat got underway the men changed into their Confederate uniforms, pulled out their weapons and took over the vessel. It was a good plan, but unfortunately, the gunboat never showed up at the rendezvous point. At least they got to keep the supply vessel, which was used by the Confederacy throughout the war.
In 1862, The Academy House was sold to Henry and Jane Bell, of Ireland, who gave it to their daughter, Mary Ann, as a wedding gift. She married Samuel Bratt of Baltimore and Yorkshire, England and the house became known as the Bratt Mansion. In the 1880 census, the couple is listed with seven children, Mary Ann’s mother, Jane Bell, and a young black servant girl, Sarah J Gibbs. The house remained in the Bratt family for 103 years, until 1965 and today is still a private residence.
Now, look across Morris Street for number 212, a bit to your left and between the Bradford pear trees. (Stop # 6)