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2009 Guided Tours of Tudor Hall by Reservation Only

Guided tours of the first floor of Tudor Hall will offered in 2009 by reservation only at 1:00, 2:00, and 3:00 p.m. on the following Sunday afternoons:

June 28
July 26
August 30
September 27
October 25

There will be no tours in November or December 2009.

Although Tudor Hall has not been restored or furnished with period furniture and currently serves as temporary offices and meeting space for the Center for the Arts, the house and grounds still retain much of their original grace and serenity, especially this time of year. However, some of that serenity will be disturbed later this summer when Tudor Hall is scheduled to receive a new roof and chimney (see post below for more info).

Reservations can be made by calling the Center for the Arts Reservation line at: 443-243-7571. Please make your reservations early to avoid disappointment.

Please drive slowly and carefully on Tudor Lane whenever you visit Tudor Hall. Thank you.

Number of People Who Have Attended Our Tours

2009: 100 so far this year (April 26, May 31)

2008: 170-175 (Oct. 26, Nov. 2, Nov. 8, Nov. 16)

Spirits of Tudor Hall was first organized in the fall of 2008.

The enthusiastic response to our tours makes all our hard work worthwhile. Thank you for visiting Tudor Hall!

New Roof for Tudor Hall This Summer

The Aegis (Harford County's local newspaper) reported on June 3, 2009, that the Harford County Board of Estimates "approved a contract for $81,850 with Decker Contracting Inc. of Elkton to remove and replace the existing roof of Tudor Hall . . . to include fascia, trim and soffit . . . The project also includes removal and replacement of the existing chimney."

Work on the new roof and chimney is currently expected to begin in mid-July and be completed by the end of August.

Spirits of Tudor Hall is working with the Historical Society of Harford County, the Junius B. Booth Society, the Harford County Historic Preservation Commission, and Harford County Historic Preservation Planner Sarah Corey to develop a plan to salvage and safely store as much of the tin roofing as possible.

In addition, we are exploring creative ideas for putting the salvaged materials to good use.

Updated information will be posted on the blog as it becomes available.

Booths on History Detectives & National Public Radio

The popular program History Detectives has returned to many public television stations for its 7th season. One of the historic objects they will explore this season is an angry and threatening letter Junius Brutus Booth Sr. wrote to President Andrew Jackson. Dinah Faber, coordinator for Spirits of Tudor Hall, assisted with the research for this feature.

The Maryland Public Television website describes the feature as follows:

"Booth Letter - A contributor gave HISTORY DETECTIVES a letter indicating that, 30 years before John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln, Booth's father threatened to kill another sitting president, Andrew Jackson. Signed "Junius Brutus Booth," the letter to Jackson reads, "You damn'd old scoundrel ... I will cut your throat whilst you are sleeping." The writer insists that Jackson pardon two men who were sentenced to death. Why did the fate of these two men incite such fury? HISTORY DETECTIVES host Tukufu Zuberi travels to Nashville to consult historians at The Hermitage, the ancestral home of President Andrew Jackson, and to Washington, DC, to talk with a Booth biographer. Was the letter a hoax? Or did assassination run in the Booth blood?"

The episode featuring the Booth letter will be aired on Maryland Public Television on:

Tuesday, July 07, 2009 09:00 PM (Channel: MPT2—Digital)

Sunday, July 12, 2009 06:00 PM (Channel: MPT2—Digital)

Monday, July 06, 2009 09:00 PM (Channel: MPT HD)

Tuesday, July 07, 2009 03:00 AM (Channel: MPT HD)

You can watch a preview of the History Detectives 7th season on their website. Junius Brutus Booth is mentioned in the preview, and you'll get a brief glimpse of the actual letter he wrote to Jackson. Just do an online search for History Detectives. The preview is available on their home page.

The story of the outlaw George Lovett alias Fontaine asking that his skull be shipped to Junius Brutus Booth Sr. was recently featured on "All Things Considered" (National Public Radio). On June 4, 2009, NPR aired a feature about Jude Law who is currently appearing in a production of Hamlet in London. Mr. Law apparently insisted on having a real human skull as a prop for the grave digger's scene. This prompted listener Jay Dennis Robinson of Portsmith, NH, to contact the show about the human skull that still "resides" in Edwin Booth's bedroom at The Players in New York City.

You can listen to both features at:

June 4th Feature about Jude Law, "On London's West End, 'Hamlet' With Human Skull":

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=104967646

June 5th Feature about the Booths, "Letters: 'Hamlet' Skull":

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=105040476

If the links don't work, go to the NPR site www.npr.org and do a search for Jude Law and Edwin Booth and links to both features will come up.

May 11, 2009, at Tudor Hall

On Monday, May 11, 2009, long time "Boothies" Deidre and Arthur Kincaid visited Tudor Hall for the first time in many years. Art has a D.Phil. in English from Oxford University and has taught English (particularly Shakespeare) in the United States, Britain, Canada, Portugal, and Estonia. As a child, Art became fascinated with John Wilkes Booth and from 1976-1993 performed a one man show entitled Tell Mother I Died for My Country in the United States and Canada and aboard the QE2. Art was also instumental in a symposium dedicated to the theatre which took place at Tudor Hall in the 1980s. Diedre has appeared onstage in a number of Shakespearian roles as well as in productions of several of Gilbert and Sullivan's light operas. Deidre became interested in the Booth family after she met Art. Art and Deidre currently live in Britain and were in the United States for a three week visit. Local artist David Fried's portraits of Edwin and John Wilkes Booth appear behind Art and Deidre.

Long time Tudor Hall supporters Jill Redding and Ann Phillips were on hand to welcome Art and Diedre to Tudor Hall. Jill and Ann were close friends of Howard and Dorothy Fox and were very actively involved in the Preservation Association for Tudor Hall (PATH) until 1999 when Tudor Hall change ownership and PATH was discontinued. Local artist David Fried's portraits of Edwin and John Wilkes Booth appear behind Jill and Ann.

As in years past, a pair of Canadian geese was successful in hatching and raising a family at Tudor Hall this spring.

New in the Booth Room

A generous supporter of Tudor Hall and the Center for the Arts recently donated three pieces of furniture to Tudor Hall including the cupboard seen at the center of this photo.

Another useful and attractive piece of furniture from the same donor appears in this photo. The informative and instructive framed poster donated by Elwin Penski of the Junius B. Booth Society was recently moved to the new location shown in this photo where it will be easier for visitors to read.


This side table adds a touch of elegance to the Booth Room at Tudor Hall. We are very grateful for the donation of all three pieces.