CAM 2017: Perry Point Mystery Cache

The Maryland Geocaching Society welcomes you to the 2017 edition of Cache Across Maryland! This is one of eleven geocaches placed throughout the ‘Old Line State’ in locations specifically chosen to showcase its diverse beauty. From the mountains of Western Maryland to the wetlands of the Eastern Shore, CAM 2017 will demonstrate that Maryland truly is ‘America in Miniature’.

Each Cache Across Maryland 2017 geocache contains a code which you will use to determine the location of the CAM 2017 Picnic to be held on May 6th. The code can be found on the inside of the cache container and on the inside front cover of the logbook. Don't forget to record this code! Any geocacher who has completed TEN of the eleven CAM 2017 geocaches and attends the CAM Picnic on May 6th will receive a Certificate of Completion and a CAM 2017 Geocoin. We hope you enjoy a very special CAM 2017!

Perry Point

The first inhabitants of the Perry Point peninsula were the giant Susquehannock Indians. Many arrow heads and other relics of the tribe can still be found throughout the Point to attest to their long occupation of the area.

In approximately 1680, Lord Baltimore made a grant of 32,000 acres of land, designated as Susquehanna Manor, to his cousin George Talbot. A part of the grant included Susquehanna Point, the first name given to the peninsula. When Talbot was appointed Surveyor General of the grant to promote settlements on the land, he found that John Bateman was already established on the Point. Bateman had acquired the land in 1658 by a patent from Lord Baltimore.

In 1710, Captain Richard Perry acquired the land. Although the name ‘Perry Point’ has been ascribed to Captain Richard Perry, the original grant to John Bateman refers to the tract as ‘Perry Point’, thus proving that the change from ‘Susquehanna Point’ occurred earlier than 1658. In 1729, the Thomas family took ownership of the Point, and around 1750 the Mansion House was constructed from bricks brought over as ballast on ships from England. The Grist Mill, which was built around the same period as the Mansion House, indicates that there was a settlement of considerable size on the Point.

On October 13, 1800, John Stump purchased Perry Point, which presumably included an estate of approximately 1,800 acres. It was during the residence of John Stump that the British came up the Chesapeake Bay in the War of 1812, burned Havre de Grace, and continued their destruction as far up as Lapidum, where they burned a grist mill owned by John Stump’s cousin. They returned down the river and marched to Principio, where they burned the Iron Works. For some unknown reason, they spared the Mansion House and Grist Mill at Perry Point.

John Stump died in 1828, leaving Perry Point to his son John Stump II. During the Civil War, the United States Government took over Perry Point for the first time, using it as a training station for cavalry mules. The officers in charge of the project used the Mansion House for their headquarters, sharing it for a time with the Stump family. When the situation became too strained for comfort, John Stump II moved his family to Harford County to live with his sister. Upon their return, they found the Mansion House badly abused and the farm sadly neglected, but many of the former slaves remained voluntarily as hired workers and the usual activities resumed.

In 1848, an agreement was drawn up between John Stump II and the promoters of the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad (a branch of the Pennsylvania system) for the right of way through the Stump farm. Due to great difficulties in the construction process, the road was not completed until about 1954. John Stump II died in 1898, leaving his estate to his 10 children.

Soon after the United States entered World War I in 1917, several representatives of the U.S. Government were sent out from Washington to inspect a number of locations for an ammonium nitrate plan. Because of its favorable location close to transportation facilities, Perry Point was selected. In February 1918, the U.S. Government purchased the 516-acre estate for $150,000 from the Stump heirs. The U.S. Government leased the Point to the Atlas Powder Company, which constructed a large ammonium nitrate plant and village of 300 homes to house its employees. The ground was broken for the construction of the plan on March 3, 1918. After only 124 days of constructions, the first unit of the plant started turning out ammonium nitrate on July 5, 1918, for use in high explosives. Soon after the completion of the plant and its village, the Armistice was signed and the manufacture of ammonium nitrate was no longer necessary.

By Act of Congress, Perry Point was turned over to the U.S. Public Health Service in 1919 for the hospitalization of War Risk beneficiaries and as a storage depot for surplus hospital supplies for the Army. Perry Point became a hospital that focused on neuro-psychiatric care. The U.S. Veterans’ Bureau took over Perry Point in 1922, and the patient population grew substantially after several other hospital facilities closed and transferred their patients and staff to the facility. President Hoover signed an Executive Order establishing the Veterans Administration in 1930, and the Perry Point VA Medical Center has been serving the health care needs of U.S. Veterans ever since. There are currently over 85 buildings dispersed throughout the 397-acre campus, with several of the buildings constructed by the Atlas Powder Company still in active use.

In 1975, the historic significance of the Mansion House and Grist Mill was recognized when the two structures were placed on the prestigious National Register of Historic Places by the U.S. Department of the Interior. These two buildings are the oldest known structures in the entire VA system.

The 168.5-acre Perryville Community Park was opened in 1972. Located at the tip of the peninsula, it features 44 acres of active parks amenities, including picnic pavilions (reservation only), water access, a fishing pier, horseshoe pits, tennis, basketball & volleyball courts, baseball & softball fields, and a playground. Restrooms are available during warmer months. The 3.5-mile VA Loop Trail (https://goo.gl/1SUdbV) follows the edge of the peninsula and eventually passes by the Grist Mill (N39° 32.964', W076° 04.230') and within sight of the Mansion House.

This geocache was placed by permission of the Perryville Town Hall. The MGS extends its thanks to the Perryville Community Park for approving this cache placement.