About The Oldest Greenhouse In America
The last of its kind still standing from the 18th century
Orangeries are generally just larger greenhouses. They also provide a more consistent temperature, making sure plants are kept cool in summer and sheltered over the winter months.
An orangery was a room or a dedicated building on the grounds of fashionable residences of Northern Europe from the 17th to the 19th centuries where orange and other fruit trees were protected during the winter, as a very large form of greenhouse.
Wye House is a historic estate and former plantation located in Wye, Maryland. It is nestled along the banks of the Wye River, a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay, and encompasses expansive grounds and scenic waterfront views. The property is home to the oldest greenhouse in the United States.
The Wye House estate greenhouse is a rectangular structure made of brick and glass and is divided into two sections: a lower section that was used for growing plants and an upper section that was used for storage.
The Wye House Orangery is described as the last orangery or greenhouse of its kind still standing from the 18th century by Conservatory Heritage Society. It is mentioned as the oldest greenhouse left in the United States by The Frederick Douglass Heritage. Its is also recognized as the only extant eighteenth-century example of its kind in the United States by the National Gallery Of Art. The Society of Architectural Historians defines Wye House Orangery as the earliest building of its type surviving in the United States.
The lower section has large glass panels that let in sunlight and heat, creating a warm and humid environment that is ideal for growing plants. It is a historic structure that was built in 1785 and was originally used to grow a variety of plants, including fruits and vegetables, for the Wye House estate.
The Wye House Orangery is 85~ feet long, with a central two-story section flanked by lower wings, and in its present form dates from the 1790's. The two-story hipped-roofed central portion is four bays long and has very tall one-story rectangular windows on the first floor.
The brick walls are covered with stucco that is rusticated in imitation of stonework and the second story windows are small and square. The flanking hipped-roof wings, each 26 feet and three bays long, are raised one step above grade, and have very tall one-story arched windows.
It sits behind the main house and consists of a large open room with two smaller wings added at some point after the initial construction. The building was used to grow orange and lemon trees and the center second-story contained a 18th century billiard room.
The Orangery still contains an example of an original 18th central heating system (hot air duct system). On both sides of the green are original 18th century formal gardens that cover between four and five acres.
Both the house and orangery greenhouse have been extensively described and researched and their national significance is well known according to the state of Maryland Historical Trust. The building's design was inspired by the orangeries that were popular in Europe at the time.
It features large windows and a steeply-pitched roof that allows for maximum sunlight and ventilation. Archaeological excavations conducted on the property between 2005 and 2014 have yielded important insights into gardening practices at Wye House as well as into the daily lives of the plantation’s large enslaved population.
The orangery greenhouse still incorporated within its walls the remains of an earlier similar building. Edward Lloyd IV, a Welsh Puritan, established Wye House in the mid-17th century after he purchased 3,500 acres of farmland along the Wye River. He grew citrus trees and other exotic plants that could not survive the harsh winters of Maryland.
The Lloyd family heavily depended on an enslaved workforce to build the family’s fortune by raising livestock and growing corn, tobacco and wheat, according to the National Gallery of Art. In fact, famed journalist and abolitionist Frederick Douglass was an enslaved child at Wye House in the 1820's.
The Wye House, at its largest, had a claim on 42,000 acres, all of which was worked by more than a thousand enslaved men and women. Over the years, the Wye House Orangery greenhouse has undergone several renovations and restorations to maintain its historical integrity.
Today it is a private residence currently owned by Richard Tilgham, Jr., the 11th generation living in the Wye House. The property was designated a National Historic landmark in 1970. Plants are still stored inside the building in winter, but a frame has been constructed to hold the houseplants, and the whole of the frame is covered with plastic to keep in moisture. In this way, the plants do not have to be watered through the entire winter.
*Note: Wye House Orangery is now private property. Please be respectful of owner's privacy.