The mantels and woodwork in the house are original. The designs on this parlor mantel are repeated from around the outside of the front door, and include engaged columns, sunburst and pineapple designs.
This Empire sofa in the formal parlor is from Snow Hill and was probably made in Philadelphia in the early 19th century. Most of the fancy furniture in this area was built and shipped from Philadelphia and New England.
The window treatments were handmade using a reproduction of a French fabric documented to have been imported to this area during the early 1800s.
The west wing was added in the 1890s by Mr. and Mrs. Calvin B. Taylor. It now houses an upstairs gallery of changing exhibits and a downstairs meeting room called the Harrison Room. The Harrison Room features displays of the Harrison family and nursery business and is available to the public for meetings and small receptions. The room seats approximately 30.
The floors actually would not have had any finish. These wood floors would have been covered in carpet during the winter which was replaced by straw mattings in the summer. The heart pine dining room floor is original. Wood floors were swept with sand for cleaning and finishing.
The portrait over the parlor mantel depicts Mary White, whose husband Jacob built Robin's Nest, an historic house located on the corner of West and Broad Streets. The Whites occupied that home during the early 1800s.
The window treatments were handmade using a reproduction of a French fabric documented to have been imported to this area during the early 1800s.
The small front room or office, at the right, contains a wooden document box lined with an 1803 newspaper. The box, pictured on the small table in this room, belonged to Doris Taylor's great-grandfather, a sea captain who paid his crew with gold from this chest.
The graining on this closet door and throughout the downstairs has been faithfully reproduced by Linda Croxson and Phillip Ward, who are among the foremost grainers extant today in America.
The dishes on the dining room's Empire server are Blue Staffordshire transfer ware. The candlesticks are Sheffield.
Man o'War, the famous racehorse, was trained and wintered on the Riddle Farm, located between Berlin and Ocean City. During the 1920s this horse won every race he was in, except one. He was the father of War Admiral and the grandfather of Seabiscuit.
The upstairs hall features a mid-19th century desk that was hand made in Berlin.
The floors are original pine and have been grained.
The 1835 American Empire chest of drawers in the main bedroom is from the gable fronted house just up the street. The glass knobs are original.
The arrow-back bench in the upstairs hall was originally painted yellow and had the original shipping label on the bottom which read "John Selby Purnell - Berlin, Maryland". Mr. Purnell lived in Burley Cottage, on South Main Street, in 1834.
The bridal trunk and clothes belonged to a local lady in 1850. Note the corset and bustle.
The clock is from Snow Hill, dated 1839, made in Reading, MA by Daniel Pruitt, Jr. The American Empire chest of drawers, (1835). The glass knobs are original to the chest. The 1834 framed sampler was embroidered by Elizabeth Margaret Dryden (later Scott).
The corner cupboard is reputedly from Betsy Ross' family. A lot of the fancy furniture from this area in the early 1800s was shipped from Philadelphia and New England.
The Harrison Room displays photographs and memorabilia from the Harrison family. The Harrison's fruit tree nursery was in business from 1884-1962 and was the largest nursery in the world during the 1920s. At one time 5000 acres of farm land were under cultivation with Harrison nurseries in MD, DE and West VA.
