Dodon

Dodon
Plantation house at Dodon, built c. 1800 to replace the original house which was destroyed by fire. This house in turn burned down c. 1953.
Alternative names	Doden
General information
Type	Mansion
Architectural style	Georgian, Victorian.
Location	Anne Arundel County
Town or city	Maryland
Country	United States
Construction started	Late 17th century
Destroyed	destroyed by fire c. 1790s, again c. 1953
Technical details
Structural system	Timber frame, brick.

Dodon, (aka "Doden") is a 550-acre (2.2 km²) farm and former tobacco plantation in Maryland, located near the South River about 10 miles (16 km) south west of Annapolis. Purchased in around 1744 by the planter and politician Dr George H. Steuart, it remains the home of Steuart's descendants to this day. Steuart grew wealthy during the colonial era thanks to proprietarial patronage, but his family's prosperity and status would be much reduced by the American Revolution and later by the American Civil War.

One source suggests that Dodon was originally patented to one James Stewart in 1669, a Scottish immigrant from Perth. Another suggests that it was owned by a Dr Francis Stockett, who "held 'Dodon', 664 acres", in 1668. Whatever its early origins, the property was thereafter owned by the Carroll family and, in 1725, William Nicholas Carroll sold it Dr George H. Steuart (1700–1784) of Argaty, Perthshire, Scotland. At Dodon, Steuart farmed the profitable cash crop of tobacco, bred thoroughbreds and held match races. His most famous horse was Dungannon, which he imported from England to compete against the stable of his rival Charles Carroll. The Annapolis Subscription Plate, the first recorded formal horse race in Maryland, was held in May 1743, and was won by Dungannon. The silver cup - actually more of a bowl than a plate - is now displayed in the Baltimore Museum of Art. It is the oldest surviving silver object made in Maryland and the second oldest horse racing trophy in America.