John B Lawson

GUNPOWDER MANOR

The King of England granted the province of Maryland to Lord Baltimore and his heirs forever. As Proprietor of the colony, Lord Baltimore made land grants to settlers, for which he received an initial fee, and an annual quit rent payment, or tax.

Lord Baltimore reserved several large manors for his own use, two of them being in Baltimore County. "My Lady's Manor", of 10,000 acres, was in the northern part of the county. It was given to Margaret, the fourth wife of Charles Calvert, the third Lord Baltimore. The second manor in Baltimore County was surveyed for Lord Baltimore himself, and contained 7,031 acres. It was surveyed in 1683, and was known as "His Lordship's Manor on the Forks of the Gunpowder River", or, "Gunpowder Manor". Tracts on these manors were leased to planters---the first leases being made in 1720.

On 13 Sep 1734, a 100-acre tract was leased to John Lawson. The length of the lease was to be for the lives of John Lawson (age 42), Thomas Lawson (age 39), and Moses Lawson (age 38).* This tract, called "Lawson's Farm", was designated as #65 on the manor survey, and the annual rent was £1. Prior to 1767, this tract was rented to George Smith.

Links

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