Historic Annapolis acquires, preserves, and displays items that illuminate life in Annapolis, Maryland, and the Chesapeake region. Comprising over 3,000 examples of fine and decorative art, the Historic Annapolis permanent collection ranges in scope from the 1600s to the present day. Many of these objects can be viewed in the exhibition, Annapolis: An American Story, at the Museum of Historic Annapolis, the William Paca House & Garden, and Hogshead Trades Museum.
To learn more about the objects in Historic Annapolis’s collection, visit the Collections section of our Blog.
Enrich the Historic Annapolis Collection
Historic Annapolis welcomes donations or loans of items for display in the William Paca House & Garden, Hogshead Trades Museum, and the Museum of Historic Annapolis. Objects that relate to the rich history of the City of Annapolis are also considered.
To donate an object or money for the Collections Fund, please contact Elizabeth Fox, Curator, at 443.221.6962 or elizabeth.fox@annapolis.org.
FEATURED COLLECTION HIGHLIGHTS
Paca SILVER CANNS
SEE THEM AT THE WILLIAM PACA HOUSE & GARDEN
William Paca, one of Maryland’s signers of the Declaration of Independence, and his wife, Mary Chew Paca, either purchased or were gifted these drinking vessels as part of a wedding present. Engraved with the monogram “WMP,” these canns were made by London silversmiths Thomas Whipham and Charles Wright in 1763, the same year the Pacas married and began construction of their house on Prince George Street. Canns (or “mugs”) were popular vessels for beer or cider used throughout the mid-to-late 1700s. Often consisting of handwrought pear or tulip-shaped bodies with a molded foot and scrolled handle, canns were relatively inexpensive and easy for colonial and English silversmiths to create. They are considered utilitarian yet elegant pieces of silver that added refinement to an elite dining service and heightened the experience of consuming such everyday beverages.
The canns, which descended through nine generations of the family, were purchased by Historic Annapolis and the Maryland Center for History and Culture over auction during Americana week at Sotheby’s New York in 2025.
John Shaw Bible
SEE IT AT THE WILLIAM PACA HOUSE & GARDEN
A remarkable survival after its discovery in the trash, this Bible belonging to the celebrated Annapolitan cabinetmaker, John Shaw, was given to Historic Annapolis in 1956 and became the first item ever accessioned into its collection. This Bible was printed in London in 1766. Throughout the book, on the blank pages between sections—such as the psalms or prayers—the Shaw family recorded their marriages, the births of their children, and the deaths of their spouses, among other milestones. Shaw even notes his bequeathal of this Bible to his daughter, Mary, two years before his death. These events were carefully recorded within the Bible to preserve this information for posterity, adding an extreme sense of irony to its later rediscovery.
Faris-Shaw-Chisholm Tall-Case Clock
SEE IT AT THE WILLIAM PACA HOUSE & GARDEN
This rare and fine American colonial period tall case clock is one of the nation’s most treasured examples of craftsmanship in clockmaking. The mahogany clock case bears the paper label “Shaw Chisholm” and houses an eight-day time and strike movement. The dial has a shaped plate engraved “William Faris Annapolis,” the silversmith and clockmaker who assembled the clock’s components. During the 1700s, clockmakers engraved their names on dials as a mode of advertising. Moon dials, as seen on this clock, involved movements that were considerably more sophisticated and displayed the phases of the moon. This piece is one of only two known Faris moon dials that are still with their original cases, and its exquisite detail suggests the work of a fine portrait painter or highly trained miniaturist.
The clock is the only William Faris and John Shaw collaboration that has ever come to light. John Shaw, born in Glasgow in 1745 and arrived in Annapolis in 1763, is considered one of the preeminent cabinetmakers of Annapolis. His partner Archibald Chisolm, also from Scotland, worked with him for only a short time between 1772 and 1776. Shaw and his shop helped bring the Neoclassical style to Annapolis homes and buildings. The Faris-Shaw-Chisholm clock testifies to the creative ingenuity and close network of Annapolis craftsmen during the Age of Elegance (1763-1774), when Maryland’s capital city experienced tremendous growth and affluence in the form of Georgian mansions, portraiture, and luxury objects. As Scottish and English-trained craftsmen, all three makers of this clock sought to secure social and economic stability while advancing their local community, and ultimately, helped establish a strong future for the young United States. Today, the clock still keeps time in the dining room at the William Paca House.
Peale Portrait of John Philemon Paca
See it at the William Paca House & GArden
This portrait depicts William Paca’s heir, John Philemon Paca (1771-1840), his only surviving child from his first marriage to Mary Chew Paca. The work has been attributed to the celebrated portraitist Charles Willson Peale by several scholars. John Philemon’s portrait displays marked stylistic similarities to other Peale paintings, particularly those from the 1780s, a period that corresponds to the age of the adolescent sitter. The young man’s red lips and cheeks, smooth, oval-shaped head with full chin, strongly defined arched eyebrows, and fullness of the mouth are characteristic of many Charles Willson Peale portraits.
Peale knew the Paca family well; in fact, he was friends with both William Paca and John, his father. In 1788, Peale came to repair his 1772 full-length portrait of William Paca, which shows him with a magnificent background of the pleasure garden at his Prince George Street home. It is entirely possible that during this trip to Maryland, he also painted this portrait of John Philemon Paca.
Carvel Hall Taproom Sign
See it at the William Paca House & Garden
The rich history of the William Paca House transcends the colonial era to which the house is currently interpreted. In 1902, the building was expanded into a two-hundred-room hotel known as Carvel Hall. Not only does this wooden sign represent a moment in the building’s history, but it also characterizes a movement within Annapolis in the 1930s and 1940s to preserve and protect the city’s colonial past.
In 1943, the owners of Carvel Hall commissioned artist Jack Manley Rosé to recapture colonial Annapolis at “the peak of its perfection” in a set of monumental murals in its restaurant, The Old Annapolis Taproom. In the 1960s, the murals were removed as part of the Paca House’s restoration. Though the murals remain in storage without adequate space for display, Historic Annapolis purchased Rosé’s sign for the Taproom, which offers a window into this interesting story.
AMERICAN RED CROSS UNIFORM
See it at the Museum of Historic Annapolis
This circa 1940s American Red Cross uniform was worn by Sally Bond Welch of Annapolis (1921-2022). During World War II, Welch volunteered with the American Red Cross at the Naval Hospital at the U.S. Naval Academy. Known as the “Gray Ladies,” these female volunteers cared for war patients and provided them with hospitality services such as writing letters, reading, and tutoring. A true Annapolitan, Welch was also a founding member of Historic Annapolis’s Board of Directors in 1952. A previous label attached to the uniform read, “Sally Bond Welch…was held in high regard by her peers who found her warm personality, compassion, and attention to detail, and dedication to her patients were qualities of the quintessential Gray Lady.”
Paul Reed Smith Guitar
See it at the Museum of Historic Annapolis
This guitar is emblematic of Annapolis’ diverse history of music and pop culture. Local self-taught maker Paul Reed Smith made a name for himself in the guitar-making industry after establishing his first workshop in a historic Annapolis garret on West Street in 1985. There, he formed what became known as PRS Guitars, which has evolved into an internationally recognized brand that has catered to professional musicians like Carlos Santana and John Mayer. Today, PRS Guitars is the third largest electric guitar manufacturer in the United States.
Made in 2021 at the PRS Guitars manufactory in Stevensville, Maryland, this PRS Custom 24 guitar has a brown stained tiger maple body with a neck covered in opal bird-shaped inlays. The inlay designs were inspired by Smith’s early experiences with birdwatching and visits to the Smithsonian, where he procured records of birdsongs. The guitar can be found on display at the Museum of Historic Annapolis.
