The descendants of John Douglas Brown have occupied the home for the past one hundred and thirty-three years. His great-grandchildren, the Fawcett family, are the present owners of the house. The Fawcett house has been little changed, and is kept in excellent repair. The woodwork in the drawing room is true to the period; that throughout the house is quaint and interesting. In the great room the fire breast is outlined with a dog-eared mold. The mantelshelf, attached without brackets, has a punch-work motif. The heavy raised panels on each side of the chimney, and the paneled closets enclose the entire west wall.
Dear Dr. Dick. By Saint Mèmin.
(Courtesy Corcoran Gallery of Art)
There are many levels, and the house goes back in a surprising brick ell that is not seen from the street. The exterior presents the appearance of a story-and-a-half cottage. Two windows, with their uncommon blinds, break the wood-shingled roof. The blinds' slats are wide and heavy, and the shutters are held in place when opened by the traditional molded iron holdbacks. The east gable end of the house is shiplap. From this side projects the entrance porch, added about 1816, and protected by "jalousies."
Portraits, old silver, glass, and china, prints and mahogany, with great grandmama's best brocade dresses, are the fruits of more than a century of the family's inheritance. The picture over the mantel is done in embroidery—the product of one of the Fawcett ancestors, worked in 1814, while a pupil at one of Alexandria's schools where young ladies were taught the fine arts, and the curriculum included every form of needlework.
Benjamin Dulany's Town House
