Mount Joy/Santa Fe Farm may have existed as a dependency of "Chews Resolution Manor" as early as 1695. Samuel Wethered is believed to have built an addition to the house in 1860. Nicknamed "Santa Fe Sam," Samuel Wethered was a long-time friend of Kit Carson's and called the home "Santa Fe."

Slaves Likely Lived in Mount Joy's Cabins Read the article from the Baltimore Sun.

The Historic Sites Inventory identifies the stone building lying immediately southwest of the main house as an original slave quarters. Just adjacent to the slave quarters is a log cabin clad in wood siding. This cabin may predate the main house and also may have served as slave quarters.

Mount Joy is currently scheduled for development. New homes, including single family homes, townhomes, and apartments will soon cover all but a tiny portion of the farm. All the buildings except the main house are scheduled to be demolished. PHC believes that the main house, the stone slave quarters, and the log cabin can all be salvaged, restored, and used as a centerpiece for the new community. Other outbuildings including a bank barn and peg and beam barn, which are directly in the path of the new development, could be dismantled and/or recycled for other restoration projects.

Update
The Department of Planning and Zoning signed a waiver for the Mount Joy Farm plan. This waiver allows the portion of the road closest to the historic structures to be categorized as "private." Private roads, unlike public roads, require no setbacks, and thus no building restriction lines.

This effort was made by Winchester Homes and Howard County solely to protect the two small historic structures at Mount Joy - a log cabin and a stone structure purported to be a slave quarters by the historic sites inventory.

This is a fine example of a private developer/builder working together with the County to develop a solution that promotes historic preservation. Winchester Homes and Howard County deserve kudos for this effort.

In a separate action, at least one of Monte Joy's barns may be headed for a new home. The smaller post and beam barn has been approved for removal to Mount Pleasant.