William Paca House and Garden
Tour a Georgian house or explore its terraced garden, restored through historic images and archaeology, in central Annapolis.
Artwork inspired by Grace Hartigan
William Paca’s house was built in the 1760s for a Maryland signer of the Declaration of Independence. Its five-part Georgian form and terraced garden express elite ambition, but the household also depended on enslaved people whose labor must not be lost behind the restored rooms. Historic Annapolis reconstructed the garden using documentary and archaeological clues after later development covered much of it.
Choose between a guided house tour, which includes the garden, and a less expensive self-guided garden visit. The formal beds lead toward a summerhouse, pond, and less rigid planted areas; that shift in design is worth following slowly. Hours change substantially by season and the property closes for winter, so confirm the current opening period before treating it as an easy downtown walk-in.
- Garden method
- Restored from archaeology
- House era
- 1760s
- Founder
- William Paca
Quick guide
- Choose a ticket
- House tour includes the garden; garden-only costs less.
- Watch the season
- The property closes in winter and hours change in fall.
Know before you go
- Start with the house story
- The rooms explain status and labor within colonial Annapolis.
- Walk the terraces
- Formal geometry changes as you descend through the garden.
- Find the summerhouse
- The pond and bridge mark the designed focal point.
- Read the reconstruction
- Ask what is original, restored, or inferred from evidence.
Good to know
House tours are guided and ticketed separately from a garden-only visit. Weather and private events can alter open hours; pets are not admitted except service animals.
Notice these
- Five-part Georgian house
- Terraced garden
- Summerhouse and fish-shaped pond