Page 79 - Maryland Historical Trust - Archaeology Colonial MD

shell and glass beads and “wild catt skinnes” used in the Indian trade.43
As ports of entry, Mattapany and Notley Hall were positioned at strategic locations at the mouths of their respective rivers, providing op- timal surveillance of river traffic. Visitors in the 1670s approaching Mattapany by river or by path would have been immediately struck by a busy settlement with a well-appointed, imposing, and fortified brick residence unlike almost any other in the colony. A separate but nearby compound, visible from the river with the mansion loom- ing in the rear, housed the government’s military strength. And, while most planters in the 1670s and 80s relied on indentured labor for their to- bacco crop, the many enslaved Africans living and working at Mattapany would have further set the governor apart. Visitors approaching Not- ley Hall would have encountered a similar sight, with Notley’s imposing brick mansion, associat- ed service structures, and large labor force (many newly arrived from Africa) appearing more like a small village than a tobacco plantation. Notley himself would have had a straight line of sight to the Virginia shore and, perhaps not coincidental- ly, the dwelling plantation of the rebel and former governor Josias Fendall. These plantations, their labor forces, and the comings and goings of the colony’s leaders and the leaders of Native groups all signaled to settlers the wealth, social standing,
figure 20
Palisade ditch, Mattapany (18ST390). Note the unusual feature at the feature’s corner, possibly representing a bastion.
figure 21
Magnetometer representation of Notley Hall (18ST74). Note the T-shaped mansion with linear drain to the west. The circular black and white feature
is the location of a modern duck blind.
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IMAGE COURTESY OF TIM HORSLEY
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF NAVAL AIR STATION PATUXENT RIVER, NAVAL DISTRICT WASHINGTON.